#dye kinda messes with the top texture

[plushchimera]

lvl100 🥳 finally

not done with msq still because I was so hell-bent on lvling at least 2 alt jobs, but almost

[another-dr-another]

insert those coins babey! no point in holding onto them if they aren't used !

You Now Own:

001 - Mineral Water (x2)

Drawn from the ocean depths and rigorously purified. Ideal for a modern on-the-go public unsatisfied with tap water.

002 - Sea Salt

A basic seasoning produced from the evaporation of seawater. It also sees use as a preservative.

003 - Ration

A set of canned and vacuum-sealed foodstuffs. The taste isn't bad, and a certain snake that wants to play hide-and-go-seek is just crazy abou- wait, what?

005 - Ramune

A sweet, lemon-flavored carbonated drink. A marble plugs the opening of the uniquely designed bottle. The bottle can also be reused if you bring it to the ramune store.

010 - Ship In a Bottle

A intricate creation, a model ship within a bottle. Made with time, love and care.

012 - Envy-Enducing Envy CD

A CD of songs by Japanese band Envy. Full of unreleased tracks/first recordings.

014 - Children's Book

A children's book about family and forgiveness! The plot is about a sister who can't get along with her younger brother, but they find common ground and bond over causing trouble for their parents.

016 - Sour Soda (x2)

No flavor is listed on the bottle other than sour, which may just be a flavor in and of itself. It's a near black shade of blue... I think.

017 - Gentleman's Guide

A book that's meant to help shape you into the perfect gentleman. However, it's rather demeaning towards the reader, which doesn't feel very gentleman-ly.

018 - Masculine Cologne

Very masculine, can only be used by masculine people. No weaklings allowed, or people with the common sense to smell it before purchasing, and realize it smells really bad.

019 - Fancy Sword

True to it’s name, it looks very fancy, and very intimidating. However, it's only for show, and rather blunt- perhaps inexpensive?

022 - ??? Alcohol

It's something alcoholic. This is a school, it should be confiscated, and you won't be receiving any more information.

024 - Hair Cutting Scissors

Snip snip snip, meant for hair-cutting at home, as these aren’t professional grade. Still though, try and make it even, okay?

025 - Purple Hair Dye

Pretty purple hair dye guaranteed to not come out of hair for weeks! More of a pinkish-purple than the box advertised, but still pretty.

028 - Constellation Skirt

With patterns matching actual real constellations. Despite matching the night sky, it almost seems sun-rise themed, with its pink background and pale gold stars.

030 - Bottled Tea

When heated up, it's meant to help soothe upset stomachs, and muscle aches. Popular among student athletes.

031 - Alarm Clock

It's a digital alarm clock. One of the few normal and functional things here, and it's the thing that screams at you to wake up every morning.

032 - Broken Stopwatch (x2)

It won't stop running, no pausing or restarting. You can however make it record different laps.

034 - Baseball Cap

Perfect for keeping the sun out of your face! This one is all black though, so it'll retain a lot of heat.

038 - Card Game (x3)

One easy to play, and popular among kids. The front side of the package shows a family of four playing.

039 - Reminder Booklet

A small pamphlet that gives reminders for daily things, such as eating, drinking, taking meds, etc. Also has room for you to add in unique personalized reminders.

041 - Tiovita

A Japanese energy drink sold at most convenience stores. Pretty inexpensive, and with a nice fruity flavor- but hey, only one per day!

044 - Lie Detector (x2)

Fun for the whole family! Though not incredibly accurate... wait, how do you know that?

045 - Evidence Encylopedia

A book focusing on evidence found in crime scenes. From most overlooked to most common, this book talks about it all.

049 - Track Award

A award from a middle school track and field award. The recipient of the trophy seems to have come in second in two events, and first in one.

050 - Plane Tickets (x2)

Anywhere, anytime, round trip tickets. Probably given as some sort of thank you for volunteering to get off of a accidentally over-booked flight.

051 - Therapy Advertisement (x2)

Some therapist endorsing themselves. Upon looking at the services they offer, I don't feel very inspired to go there.

056 - Soulmate Sweatshirt

A sweatshirt that supposedly brings the most comfort not when you wear it, but when holding someone wearing it. Currently smells strongly of... lavender?

057 - Scrap Metal x3

Seems to be broken bits and pieces of some sort of engine. Could be repurposed, or simply a cool trinket.

059 - Old Journal

It seems to be from the late 80s, and kept being written in up to the early 90s. There's a entry on the last page, synopsizing the birth of the owners son, and how proud the owner is of his now five year old.

060 - Paper Boat

A piece of paper that's been folded into a boat. Apparently you can fold and tear it as you tell a story to provide a visual aid for the story, but no one here knows how.

061 - Calendar

It's got pictures of internationally famous towns on it! This particular one has been written on with a note on almost every day.

064 - Face-paint Kit.

A professional face-painting kit. However, it’s missing it’s red, yellow, blue and white paint- those colors have been all used up.

065 - Life Quote Sign (x3)

A sign with some stereotypical life quote written on it in flowery lettering. Most likely to be seen hanging in a kitchen.

066 - Throwing Rings (x2)

Meant for fair games. If you have good enough aim, maybe you'll win a prize!

067 - Pleasant Savior

Seemingly a CD filled with various performances by the same person. I haven't played the CD, so I don't know what kind of performances he does though, and the name is off-putting.

069 - “Fresh” Bouquet (x3)

Somehow still smells sweet with flowers that look flawless. It's comprised of roses that have been dyed rainbow, all of them.

070 - Hair Ribbons (x3)

They come in a variety of colors, but the Monomono Machine only dispenses yellow. Guaranteed to make the wearer feel a certain sense of self-satisfaction.

071 - Girls Profile

A student profile from a all-girls academy. The paper is water-stained and some of the ink has run, so it's hard to make out what's on the paper.

073 - Baby Doll

It seems to be from around the 90s and... not quite well-loved, but well-played-with. Doesn't come with the original clothes... or hair.

075 - Dream Catcher

Made by a past SHSL. It's actually been pretty effective, and is part of the reason they got scouted.

080 - Retro Game

It's handheld, old, and extremely broken. The screen has been shattered so it displays wrong, all cracked and distorted.

081 - Blackout Curtains (x2)

Completely block out any and all light. Strong enough to plunge a room into darkness.

084 - Noise-cancelling Headphones

They completely block out all sound! Also come with the ability to adjust the size of the band, and will stay on your ears even if you pull the band down to your neck.

086 - Wall Decals

Stickers you can put on your wall. They do a decent job of covering up holes in said walls.

087 - Antique Stuffed Animal (x2)

It seems to be bunny themed, and dressed in clothes you'd see on babies in the 1930s. It's in pretty good shape, other than a few tears where the lace trim at the end has had it’s stitches removed.

088 - Embroidery Kit

Or rather, a needle and thread to be used for embroidery. There's only one needle, and one spool of thread, but hey, it’s something.

090 - Scented Markers (x2)

A full rainbow set, all with their own unique smell! Be careful though - it's hard to get these out of clothes.

092 - Fake Christmas Tree (x2)

Too plastic to be a real tree. It's also incredibly small, but real trees can be small too, so that doesn’t really mess with the realism.

093 - Hair Gel

Top of the line hair gel, and completely unopened! Helps you style your hair and keep it in place, but doesn’t give it the nicest texture.

095 - Instant Noodles

Just add water to get something hot, salty, and/or spicy! A nice meal if you're looking for something that's quick and easy, you can dress it up some too.

097 - Drink Mix

A powder used for ??? warm drink, made with milk, tastes like... something? You try it and tell me, but it smells good at the least.

099 - The DSM-I

Self-explanatory, it's the original version of the DSM, from 1952. Index cards have been slipped in-between most of the pages, talking about what happened with the information listed there.

100 - Collection Of Old Ads

Dating back to the 1920s. A magazine full of ads from a different time, it’s somewhat of a miracle the paper held up while the ideas in it didn’t.

101 - Wooden Ruler

It's a wooden ruler. Used for measuring things, nothing else- why do you ask?

102 - Building Blocks (x3)

Stacking and stacking, and sending it all crumbling down. And then you rinse and repeat.

104 - Cutesy Hair Clips

Snap clips in pastel colors and covered in designs. Oddly enough, there isn't any non-pastels, unless you count the few white clips.

106 - Newspaper Collage

Seems to be a collection of snippets from newspaper articles. There must be hundreds in here... it's a big collage.

107 - Cropped Sweatshirt

Cropped specifically due to a parent saying not to. The sweatshirt seems to be related to some organization, with the big fancy emblem on it.

109 - Pins And Patches

A mix-and-match bag full of enamel pins, buttons, and iron-on patches. Good luck finding something to do with them all.

110 - Origami Paper (x2)

Simple origami paper, in a variety of colors and patterns! Comes easy to tear out of a book, which includes instructions on basic origami types.

112 - Colorful Band-Aids.

They come in many colors, designs, even different sizes. Some seem to be made to cover up paper cuts, others meant to help skinned knees and scraped elbows.

Thank you for visiting the Monomono Machine!

~*~

Maeda, narrating - And I thought the coins were kinda heavy...

Maeda - What now?

[Free Time Event - Uehara]

{Head to Your Room}

[dancingthesambaa]

CBT Chapter 2

Chapter 2 Silence is Golden... and Necessary

It’s been a few hours since Branch had left Pop Village and entered the Deep Forest, the sun had already begun to set, so he decided to settle down for the night. It was when he was staring at the campfire, waiting for his food to cook, when he realizes that he has absolutely no idea what he should even do when he sees the Techno trolls, let alone how to talk to them.

“Welp i’m screwed,” Branch deadpanned as he flopped down on his back. “I barely know how to talk to the trolls that are in the village. How am I, the most cynical and least friendly troll, supposed to talk to a brand new species of trolls that I just literally heard about barely a week ago!” He quieted down when he realized where he was and took a deep breath.

“Okay. Alright. Okay. Alright... Let's make a list of how to approach them then make our way up.” He sat up and took a loose leaf from one of the various plants. “Maybe just by starting off with a hello, that usually works...most of the time. Should I try maybe just jumping into it like poppy- Nope never mind. Not gonna happen.” He scraped off that idea before it could fully form. “I’ll be more likely to scare them off than be seemingly friendly.” He humorlessly chuckled.

Gear, wanting no part of that negativity lingering, bit his ear once again.

“Yeah, yeah. I know.” He rolled his eyes at his partner. “If all comes to fail then a simple handshake would work.” Branch looked at his hands...his very gray hands and then he realized that this was just gonna be another group that will look down upon him for his skin.

“Right, I almost forgot about it.” He continued to look despondently at his hand. “This is just gonna be another repeat isn’t it.”

Gear buzzed around his head before landing on his shoulder and cuddled up under his chin for comfort.

“Thanks. We'll worry about that when we get to it.” Branch wordlessly put away his list and collected his now cooked berries and began eating before heading back to the back of the Beetle, where it acted as a sleeping quarter, and rested up for the night with Gear sleeping soundlessly beside his head.

——————

The next few days seem to have flown by as he continued on his way. Branch expected the untrodden area to be different, but he didn’t quite realize it until he saw that the usually obnoxiously brightly colored trees have turned into a tranquil umber. This was very strange to see as the trees that surround the Pop Village stays the same color all year round, so this is his first time seeing a tree that isn’t trying to murder his eyes with color.

“I bet some of the trolls in the village would just love this.” Branch said to Gear, who was casually drinking the water from the river that they just crossed. “They wouldn’t have to use brown dye anymore.” Then he thought about it. “Or maybe not, they would actually hate this forest as barely anything here is colorful for their taste.”

He then walked over and plucked a piece of bark from the tree. “Honestly, it kinda is strange to not see brighter colors, but it goes to show just how different everything is the farther we’re away from the village.” He paused at what he just said before throwing away the bark and marching back to the Beetle Trail. “Come on Gear, it’s best we get going.”

She locked her beady eyes onto Branch and silently made her way back into his hair.

Branch leans back in his seat as he goes over the map. “So we are here by the river, so we need to go past those mountains and keep straight until we hit that large mass of water. I wonder how they managed to keep such a large kingdom above the water? It should be near impossible, but I guess we’ll just have to see for ourselves.” Branch closed up the map before heading out once more.

It was in the middle of his eleventh day of travel when he finally caught sight of the mountains, and they were a sight to behold as he stopped the Beetle to get a good look at the massive tower of nature.

There wasn’t just one, as Branch first thought, but multiple mountains that littered the region. They had a heavy russet tone that just continued to climb higher and higher until finally changing tune and switching into lighter texture, it almost looked like snow. He was amazed by it and that was the only one in which he can somewhat see the top. The rest towers above the first one, they almost seem to reach the heavens, as the sight continues to climb upwards and past the milky white clouds.

“Amazing,” Branch breathed out. “This is simply breathtaking.” He got out the Beetle and proceeded to take out his notebook and began to write down in vivid detail the sight he was witnessing. He had long decided to bring a notebook to chart all the new things he might learn in case he can ever use it in the future.

“It’s a good thing I brought another notebook, it’s almost the second week and it has almost reached the halfway mark.”

After the hour had passed it was decided that it was time to pack up and head back on the path.

——————

“No! For the last time, you are not gonna have another honey rose, you know eating too many of those is bad for you.” Branch exasperatedly said while he drove through the quiet plains.

“Buzzz bzzz!” She fluttered indignantly.

“I don’t care if you only just had one, you know you can’t have more than you're supposed to!”

“Bzzzzzz!” She spewed angrily as she flew out of his hair and above the car, keeping pace as he continued to drive past a hollowed-out tree.

“Don’t you take that tone with me! The last time I let you eat more you couldn’t fly for days! Remember how I had to carry you everywhere in the bunker?!” Branch was more than done with this conversation, he was so engrossed though that he didn’t even notice the many ditches along his path.

“Zzz...buzz.”

“It was not worth it! You cannot fly there and tell me-,” he was cut off as something leaped out, next thing he knows he stopped in the middle of the road alone. He was alone.

Gear was not with him.

He leaped out the Beetle and immediately followed the sound of his distressed friend humming. In fact, Branch notices, as he continues to run forward to her, it was the only sound other than the leaves that break under his feet and the stem that creaks as he uses his hair to leap himself forward.

When he finally catches up he sees, or what he assumes, a large creature that was almost twice as big as a pod, its main body consisted of a cerulean shell that engulfed its body so much that all that was seen was its legs and head. There were also vines surrounding the creature, it even had some draping across its shell. But what caught Branch eyes was its own eyes, or rather his lack of eyes as all he saw of the face was a mouth and tangled up in the vines a few feet away was Gear.

He inhaled sharply at the sight of his friend being held down.

Then a few vines hoisted itself up, as if they were being held up by strings, and suddenly shot in his direction. Branch luckily just managed to push himself to the side as the vines viciously attacked the now empty spot Branch was previously in. When it realized that nothing was there anymore they slowly started to coil back to their previous spot and that’s when Branch noticed something as he watched the vines. The vines on the creature's back were also doing the same thing, in fact, it seemed to be receding down into its shell.

‘The vines are not on the shell, it’s a part of it!’ Branch thought as he continued to watch and see if he could use this to his advantage. ‘But why would this creature require the vines?’ Then something clicked within his brain. ‘No senses! The vines must act like its eyes and ears since it has none upon its face, this must be how it catches its food.’

Branch looks back to Gear, who was now looking at him. He gently smiles at her before putting a finger to his lips. Gear nodded her head and settled down, she trusted her partner to help her out of this mess.

He leans down and slowly grabs a few of the clumps of dirt that erupted from the tossed up ground of the vines’ previous attack. He mushes a few of them together until he has five solid clumps of dirt. Then he carefully picks up the pieces with his hair and flung it as far as he can in the opposite directions.

The vines began to track the sound and follow it, they were a lot more vines that followed the dirt than there was before, which was what he had planned. He then uses his hair once more to grab Gear, who now only had one vine tying her up rather than the multiple ones and grabbed her from its surprised, or what he guessed was surprised, hold and proceeded to run as fast as he could as he swiftly flew through his previous path.

“RAWRRRR!” The beast roared from where he was and could almost hear the vines now hissing. Branch didn’t know that vines could even hiss.

He decided to run faster.

He could hear some of the vines closing in on him. Their hisses seemed to be drawing nearer no matter how fast he swung or ran they always seemed to be coming closer. He needed a plan, but what could he even do. Then a thought came to mind a very risky, but possible, thought.

He looked down at Gear, who had now moved into his arms as he needed to have full use of his hair, and gave her a squeeze as he swung down in front of a plant and leaned his body against it. He took a deep breath and waited.

He could hear the hisses of the vines as it continued to move closer and closer until finally, he saw it. He finally saw the vines, it’s voices angrily hisses as it continued its charge forward to catch their prey. Branch stiffens as one of the vines' body is laid just inches away from his foot, another is draped above the plant he was leaning against and one was on his other side coiled around another plant. There was no exit if he made a sound, no matter which way he went or how fast he ran, the vines would catch him faster, he holds Gear tightly almost as to shield her from their none existent eyes.

It seemed like hours had passed when the vines slowly decided to move back to its main body as they couldn’t find their prey. The vines surrounding the duo had also finally retreated back until finally, they were alone. Both of them stayed silent until Branch worked up the nerve to walk, not run especially not now, back to the Beetle. Gear was still held tightly to his chest as his eyes began to dart back and forth as if to see if the vines or any other creature would try to make itself known.

When they reached the Beetle Branch carefully got into the car, Gear also carefully flew inside his hair, and drove slowly through the uprooted path, to which he can now assume were other unlucky victims that made its presence unfortunately known. He kept driving and driving until he finally stopped when the only available light was the moon in the sky, neither one of them made a sound throughout the entire trip.

Branch didn’t make a sound as he leaned his seat and just stared at the stars. Gear then flew her way down to his chest and also began looking at them; neither one made a sound as they slowly fell asleep.

————-

Almost three weeks have passed since they left Pop Village and it’s been five days since they were attacked, he definitely wrote down in his notebook where he came in and left and made an approximate guess on the recommended distance away from the creature vines. The Shell Constrictor, yes he has terrible names but Gear seems to agree on its accuracy no matter how bad the name, was temporarily wiped away from his thoughts when they see something blue. They had finally reached the lake where the Techno trolls lived, except for one small detail.

“This is not a lake.” Branch unemotionally said as he continued to look at the water that for miles and miles ahead, he couldn’t see the land on the other side.

He looks to the left, nope still all water.

He looks to the right, well would you look at that more water.

Branch stopped his Beetle on the shore of the not-lake and just stared, not in wonder like the mountains, but horror.

‘I’m going to have to cross this.’ He thinks as he walks out his car and looks out upon the waters. Gear nervously hovers next to him as Branch walks to where the water reached the sand. He watches listlessly as the water gently caresses his feet as it continues to move in and out, to and fro, back from its starting point and forth to towards his feet.

‘I’m going to have to cross this.’ His mind repeated once more than he kneels onto the sand and screams.

“What was I thinking! What was I thinking! How stupid could I EVEN BE!” Branch screamed out the frustrations that have been plaguing him since he left his bunker. “To think that I could even believe that I had a shot at this! Boy was I fucking stupid! I’m not brave! I’m not! I’m not!” He bashed his head upon the sand, Gear flying around his head and bumping into him as if to wake him up, but he just pushed her away.

“I’m just a paranoid kid who was too scared to not trust anyone and decided to fuck off on my own and look where that got me! The King thinking I was so independent that he send me on a suicide mission in the hopes of having aids! Well, guess what?! HE PICKED THE WRONG DAMN TROLL! I can’t even talk to a troll without screaming at them or them looking disgusted at my skin, what made him think it was a good idea for me to start this whole mess!” Branch paused and looked at his hands. “What made him think that I was even good enough?” He said nothing as he moved his hands to his hair and began to grip it tightly.

Gear was fluttering around trying to find anything that could help. Until she stopped and zoomed into the pack, almost ripping the ties Branch made for it, and dug deeper inside, passing the crispy succulent honey roses, until she finally found the treasure she was looking for. She flowed out of the sack holding it and quickly and carefully draped it around his shoulder and a part of his head.

Branch freezes as he felt a familiar cloth embrace him, it’s a cloak. It’s a simple light blue cloak that has violet dots following a dark blue firefly at the bottom.

It was the same cloak that Grandma had shown long ago, she told him that his father had crafted and gifted this treasure to someone special.

It was the same cloak that he clenched tightly to when they had finally escaped from the bergens.

The same one which he wore when he was hyperventilating deep into the bunker after a rough day.

This was his mother's cloak.

He desperately clung onto the cloth and began to listen and count his breathing to calm down. It wasn’t until breath number hundred and fifty-two that he noticed that he was still in the water. He quickly walked out of it loose pull and went back to the Beetle, to which Gear quietly followed, and leaned to the side of the car and slid down until he had touched the sandy bottom. Gear silently made her way to his pack before dragging over a berry to him as she landed on his knee.

Branch looked at her then smiled as he patted her head. “Where would I be without you?” He said as he munched down on the berry.

“Bzzz.”

“Yeah, I wouldn’t know either.” Branch looked at the cloak once more then back to the firefly. “How did you even know I would need this?”

“Uzz, Buz,” she looked at him then went back to his pack and grabbed herself her honey rose.

“If I can have a breakdown in my home then I could have a breakdown anywhere else, huh make sense.”

After their meal they continued to watch the waves, then he had an idea as he dusted the sand from his cloak.

“If I wore something to cover my skin then maybe I would have somewhat of a chance to talk to them.” Branch then leaped up and looked through the shell of the Beetle until he found a dark green cloak with a hood attached to it. He placed it on and it covers the whole skin with just his face showing, which he can pass it off as the shadows from the hood.

“Yeah, this can work,” He nodded to himself as he gently placed his mother's cloak back into his pack for safekeeping. “Thanks, Gear.”

She buzzed as she placed herself in his hair to take a nap.

“You do that, we’re gonna have a long ride before we can get there.” Branch hopped back into the Beetle, not before triple checking locks and food, grabbing a pair of black goggles and pulled a few levers as he drove straight into the not-lake. The wheels had moved inside the car and a propeller had popped out from the back.

He took a deep breath, clutched his cloak once more and steeled his eyes in determination as he began his drive across the waters. Thus began their trip across the not-lake as their now boat soared through the cerulean waters.

—————

“Nothing. There is a whole lot of water, fishes, weird rocks and nothing, absolutely nothing.” Branch deadpanned as he continued to sail through the waters. He thought he would at least catch sight of anything by now, but unfortunately luck wasn’t on his side. It’s been a couple of hours since they last left shore and Branch was so close to ripping his hair out in frustration and bottling that deep-seated panic that he is lost in the middle of the eternal unknown waters.

Even Gear had woken up at this point and tried flying around the area also in hopes of finding anything that resembled or left clues of the elusive Techno trolls. But still nothing.

Branch let out a frustrated sigh as he stopped his boat near one of the bright green rock structures. He had come across more of those on the fifth hour upon the seemingly endless waters. Instead, he decided to take a closer look at it, he wasted enough time searching and decided he needed a break before his body decides, or worse Gear, needs one for him. He placed his hand upon the rock when he felt it.

Thump Thump Thump Thump

He stared for a bit before looking at Gear, who was floating along with water, and called out to her.

“Gear, come here for a bit, cause I want to double-check that i’m not as crazy as I usually am.” She then lifted her body over to where Branch was and he just pointed to the rocks. When she placed her feet on there she instantly took it off in shock, but then placed it back down, cautiously. She looked to Branch and nodded.

“Okay great, just checking,” Then Branch looks down at the water, brings out the goggles he had placed to the side, places them back on his face, and takes a deep breath and submerged his head inside the water.

He then realizes that the weird rock structure was only the tip of the iceberg as the rest of its structure just went further down under, passing the brightly colored fishes swimming underneath, into the water depths. And he can’t see the bottom.

Great

He lifts his head back up and lightly knocks it on the rock structure. “You have got to be kidding me.”

On one hand, the Techno trolls have to be a highly advanced species to have an underwater nation and still be thriving. They must have all sorts of machinery that are helping them breathe underwater and be thriving underneath. It actually made Branch a little excited, not even the mechanics at the village are up to par with what these trolls can do.

But on the other hand, this means he has to dive down, to who knows how many feet down, into the still very unknown waters and hope that he would find civilization first before any of the predators of the deep have the taste for this troll and firefly.

Branch looked towards Gear and she dropped her wings when she realized what they were about to do. She fluttered back to him sadly and glumly settled into his hair.

He scratched her ear in apology. “Yeah, I know but just bear with it for a few hours. Hopefully, we can find them soon and you won’t have to be stuck in here.”

So with that Branch once again triple checked the boat, making sure everything was safe and secured, then sat back down pushed a few buttons then slowly turned the knob, and as he turned the knob a clear dome had made his way from the back of the shell until it finally settled at the front.

Branch doesn’t often use this part of the Beetle very often, mostly when he goes exploring underwater in the lake of the Deep Forest, and those times were severely limited. But he made sure this was up to snuff before he left, after all, it never hurts to be prepared for anything and Branch will damn try to be prepared for anything.

So when he dived in, but not before twisting the knob a few times to make sure it was locked in firmly, making sure the dome wasn’t cracked and checking up on the downtrodden Gear, he followed the now increasing large rock structure down under and continued to make his way down.

He passed by a few fishes, one of them have what looks like a stereo for a mouth, tried his best not to be in front of underwater caves, who knows might come out of it, went through the most strangest of underwater plant life, there were plants growing out of the rocks, until finally after the third hour he spotted a bright neon green light in the distance down below.

As he grew nearer he could now hear the ‘Thump’ sound and then he saw it. He saw more of the weird brightly colored rocks that changed colored with each different beat. He could see the green light now that shifted into blue as it emitted from some of the strange rocks. But most of all he saw in the center a giant green heart that was made up of smaller green hearts and being held up by two pillars of rocks with plant life growing out of them. The entire structure was just floating high above the sandy floor.

‘Stunning,’ Branch thought to himself and he went closer to get a better look, but then he noticed something was surrounding the structure. It was a bubble. And when he took a look past this bubble, there were many other bubbles as well, some looked to be tubes connecting to other bubbles and others leading straight up.

He stopped the sub right outside the bubble of the heart structure and looked around to see if he could find an opening, then he saw down below an eight arm neon yellow creature swimming it’s way to the bubble. Branch continued to watch as he saw the creature harmlessly make its way through the bubble and then had fallen and crawled its way to the structure.

Branch lowered his sub to the ground, slowly and carefully, pushed his sub forward and felt no resistance as he made his way through. Then it plopped to the bottom of the sand. This gave a momentary scare to the duo but as they sat down for a moment they eased up when they realized that nothing had snatched them up. He looked back and sure enough, they were inside the dome, but he couldn’t get his submarine to move.

‘Interesting, it seems like the bubble keeps the air in while keeping the water out,” Branch thought as he tried to distract himself from being out in the open and defenseless.

He took a deep breath then turned the opening knob only a sliver and cracked open the dome, he paused for a bit to make sure no water had entered, then continued to slowly open up the dome. When it was halfway open Gear had lifted out of his hair and right into the sweet freedom.

“Gear wait!” Branch leaped from the machine, quickly triple-checking to make sure the Beetle was secured, and followed after Gear.

His feet crunched against the cobalt blue sand and he constantly had to swerve around the weird rock with the stringy neon plants that rested on top. He then stopped when he saw Gear making his way back to him, more relaxed than she has been in the last three hours cramped up in the underwater pod.

“Next time give a troll a warning alright,” he lightly scolded her before looking up at the heart structure and now that he is closer to it, he can see that there are different sized stereos within the rocks. He marvels at the architect before looking right in the middle below the heart, there was a stand.

He uses his hair to reach one of the rocks that supported the heart and made his way up. He continued to climb up until he finally was under the glowing heart. Branch looked out and saw that he may have come in from the side as a large neon-colored bridge formed an opening.

“This must be where parties are held,” he theorized, since the entire set up just looked very similar to the ones at the village, except this one is underwater.

“Oh yeah, our parties are pretty wild!” A voice happily stated.

“AH!” Branch swung off the rock structure and hid behind the pillar to shield himself from the unknown entity.

“Oh, seashells! I am so, so sorry about that!” She, Branch assumes, cried out in panic. “I did not mean to startle you like that. It’s just that I was looking for Barnaby, my wee baby octopus, since the silly goober just loves to explore. Then I saw you here and I was very curious cause you looked very different, I mean you don’t have a tail! Wait, was that offensive? It probably was, I am so sorry once more! And well here we are and now I’m just raving like a mad stingray who is fighting with a raging jellyfish!” Silence filled the air as she took a few breaths before continuing. “And now I just realize that I haven’t even introduced myself. Hi, my name is Bliss Marina it’s nice to meet you, what’s your name?”

Branch had no idea what to do. He knows he should go out there and introduce himself, but he can’t. He knows that he has to talk to the troll, but he just can’t. He is utterly petrified and his legs can’t move.

He can’t move.

“Wha-hey! Whoa, um can you please stop that?” Then she started to talk to something else. “Whoa there, wait what are you? You look so cute! Almost like a glowing guppy!”

‘Glowing-! Gear!’ Branch almost forgot about her, he then moved to face his friend and the Techno troll. Or what he assumed was the Techno troll. She was a bright pink with the most vibrant magenta color hair he has ever seen, and that says a lot coming from where he grew up in. He then saw that she had no feet, instead, it was replaced with an equally bright pink tail that is decorated with blue and yellow dots along the bottom. It matched her arms as it was raised in a calming motion against a furious Gear, who was buzzing furiously against her face.

“Gear, i’m okay! You can stop that.” Gear then noticed that her friend was okay, she was about to throw down against the pink menace when she saw her partner hiding from her. She then fluttered around him to make sure he was okay.

“Yeah, i’m fine. No need to worry,” He scooped her up then stiffens as Marina pink eyes meet with his gray eyes. He tightens his cloak around his body.

“Oh. My. Oceans. You are different!” She squeals and her pink and blue gills fluttered at the same time. Now that he got a better look at her he saw that her body didn’t touch the ground, in fact, she was seemingly floating in the air as she zipped around him almost teleporting from one place to another. Branch stiffened and took a step back, his back now touching the pillar and his hair slithering out of the hood just in case he needed a quick escape.

Unfortunately for him, Bliss took notice and stilled her movements. “Wait, wait don’t go! Sorry, sorry! I just sometimes get so excited at times and well you are something new Mr. Troll!”

“...Branch,” He said quietly after finding his voice.

“Can you repeat that please? I didn’t quite catch that,” She asked politely.

“My name is Branch, it’s nice to meet you too,” Branch took a slow breath and took a step towards her.

“Branch, nice name. And such a nice voice as well!” She happily smiled at the unknown troll, she felt really bad for scaring him. She didn’t mean to frighten him but she was just so curious, though her brother always did say that staring at people without them knowing did frighten them when they finally noticed her. Though she has a blast when she does it to her brother, he just never learns. “Sooo, who are you?”

“I’m-,” Gear settled onto his shoulder in support, he pushed forward “i’m a Pop troll, from above the water.”

“Above the water! Amazing! Many trolls have been above the waters and they never went farther than the shores because of the dangerous predators that rest farther within. Are you telling me that there are more trolls outside of the ocean!?” She completely ignored Branch's mention of being an entirely different species, she was more invested in trolls surviving and living on land. There were so many dangerous creatures above the waters after all.

“Yeah...ocean?” Branch raised his eyebrow at the strange word.

“You know the water that surrounds us? This is an ocean, are you telling me that this is your first time seeing an ocean! Is there no ocean where you're from?” She questioned, she simply can’t imagine a life where there is no ocean. Bliss couldn’t even think of anywhere without water.

“Not really, we have these small bodies of water called lakes.” Branch takes a look around the bubble. “It’s almost the size of this bubble.”

“Wow,” Her body slumped forward in amazement, he then saw that right smack in the middle of her body was a glowing pink heart. “Only the size of an air bubble, that is unbelievable.” She then turns to see Gear, who was still glaring at her. “Who is that then?”

Branch lightly scratched Gear in an attempt to calm his friend down. “This is Gear, she is a firefly.”

“Coool, what’s a firefly?”

“A firefly is an insect that can light up in the dark and be used to send letters to other trolls.” He calmly explained to her, he slowly calmed down with each minute that passes. At first, he assumed he was talking to an underwater version of Poppy, he thought she would invade his space without permission, but even when she was flying around him she had never gone too close to him. He appreciated it.

“Ooh, sounds like a dragonfly and a glofish meshed together. Dragonflies help transport our letters and glofish lights up and can make for vibing strobes lights!” The mermaid-like troll cheerily smiles, she was glad that he wasn’t as scared of her now. “She’s very protective of you, she was as feisty as a tangler fish, she was ready to fight me when she thought I was trying to harm you.”

He smiled at his friend, who puffed up in pride. “Yeah, she is.”

“She is almost as cool as- Barnaby!” She shot up and started to frantically look around. “Barnaby, I was looking for Barnaby! Have you seen him?!” She faces Branch once more. “He is neon yellow with eight cute little arms and the most soulful orange eyes! I was looking for him all day!”

Branch thought back and remembered a creature of that same resemblance entering the bubble. “Yeah, I think I saw him entering the bubble before I did.”

Her eyes lighten in glee. “You have! Can you show me where?!” She then began to follow Branch to where he last saw her bundle of gooey laffy taffy.

They eventually saw him at the floor below the rock structure they were on, Branch using his hair once more to swing down to get off of the structure safely.

“Oh Barnaby, don’t you ever scare me like that again! I couldn’t find you anywhere near the caverns, next time tell me if you go exploring so that I can join.” She started to squeeze the tiny creature close to her. Then she swirls around to face Branch. “This is Barnaby, my wonderful octopus, Barnaby this is Branch and his amazing partner Gear.”

Barnaby looked at the two strange creatures in front of him and slowly raised an arm in ‘hello’. Gear flew up and in front of the strange creature and buzzed back in reply.

“Aww, look at that, they're already becoming friends.” She smiled down to watch the two interact with one another.

Branch continued to watch as well, he was glad that she was making friends. She never quite got along with the other trolls at the village, apparently she was a bit too headstrong for them, or what he had heard when he listened to some of the trolls gossiping.

“Speaking of friends, you should definitely meet my brother!”

Branch's small smile vanishes as he stiffens once more, but forces his body to relax again as he knows that she’s not trying to trap him and only trying to be friendly. “I don’t know, i’m not the best at...socializing.” This conversation alone was barely one of his better ones, he hasn’t screamed at her...yet.

“Don’t worry he is great at socializing. I mean he has to do it all the time.” She floated a few feet above as she flew her hands above her head to emphasize herself.

“Well I don’t know- I mean-,” Branch stumbled on his words. Usually, he would just say no and move on, but he needs to make a good impression and right now it’s not working out so well for him.

‘And besides, it’s not like she did anything wrong.’ He thought as she continued to gush about her brother.

“I mean he even djs the most flippin parties of all times!! And! And!” She freezes as she was cut off as a dark blue hand covers her mouth. Branch did the same as well.

“You have got to stop this Blissy,” the voice chuckles as Branch's eyes slowly follow up the blue hand and past the rainbow-colored arm. “I think everyone from this reef and back knows how vibin these parties are without your play by play.” His eyes then saw an equally blue body with a pink, blue and indigo tail and then his eyes met electric blue eyes. The same ones that were looking right back at him curiously.

“Well, this is new,” The blue troll tilted his head to get a better look at the cloaked troll, but Branch took a step back. “Whoa, my bad didn’t mean to startle you. it's just that, well-” Bliss cut him off.

“This is Branch, don’t worry he’s chill,” She scooped up Barnaby “He even helped me find Barnaby and I was searching for hours!”

“Is that so?” The brother then smiled at Branch, “Well if you're cool with my sis, then you're definitely alright by me. Welcome to Techno Reff, the name is Trollex Marina or King Trollex as some of my peeps like to call me. Now, who are you? Cause as far as I can tell, I don’t think you are a Tech troll.” The King chuckled warmly, he has a feeling this was the beginning of something interesting.

It was then that Branch realized that he was not only in front of the King of the Techno troll but also the princess, Bliss Marina, the same troll who he was a giant mess around.

Great

—————

That concludes it! Next chapter we will finally dive deep into the Techno trolls and all the world-building!

If anyone doesn’t mind I would love to hear how you feel towards certain music and just what songs do you think would mesh well with this story. If it clicks then I will put it in!

Peace!!

[softwarmboy]

1. Museum date or aquarium date? Why?

Aquarium!!! I’ll always take the option with animals

2. Describe your favorite type of weather.

Cloudy, cool, slight cold breeze, smell of fall leaves and campfire, maybe some light fog 👌🏼👌🏼

3. Name a subject/topic you know a lot about.

Halo and TSC!!!

4. Do you have any friends or know anyone with the same name as you?

I’ve only met 2 other Baileys, one was an absolute dick and the other was just as quiet and shy as me so we never spoke 😂

5. What’s something most people love that you hate?

Avocado 😂 it’s a texture thing for me

6. Who knows the most about you personally?

That ones kinda hard to answer??? I’ve changed a lot over the last 3 years but probably @gemder and my last 2 ex’s

7. If you could create ANY mix-up or mythical animal and have it be brought to life, what would it be?

Dragons!! I was OBSESSED as a kid

8. Do you think everyone in our lives serves a purpose, or are some people just there?

I think we choose who’s in our lives! Some teach us good lessons and some teach us bad ones! But a lesson nonetheless!

9. How do you feel about getting your picture taken?

Mixed feelings ;-; candid ones are nice cuz they usually turn out better cuz I don’t have the chance to be awkward 😂

10. Any guilty pleasure/s?

Oh god so many 😂😂😂😂

11. What is your favorite Studio Ghibli film and why?

My Neighbor Totoro! Literally just cuz it was cute asf

12. Do you always make eye contact with people when you’re speaking to them?

I try to! That’s always been a struggle for me cuz I’m self conscious as fuuuuck but I’m getting better!

13. Have you ever self-harmed?

Yes, many many times ;-;

14. What’s the nicest compliment you’ve ever been given?

That I have the most beautiful eyes!!!

15. Have you felt butterflies in your stomach today?

A lil!!!

16. Did anyone/anything get on your nerves today?

My alarm 😂😂😂

17. Is there something you currently want, that you can’t have?

Not that I can think of???

18. Who was the last person to make you feel embarrassed or uncomfortable?

Honestly, myself

19. Think of the last film you watched. Who was your favorite character in it?

The last movie I watched was Brother Bear and my favourite character is Tanana!!

20. What are you known for?

Being kind, gentle, quiet and patient

21. What is something you are skeptical about?

Religion, really anything like that, that I can’t see or hear, I WANT to believe in things like that but I have a hard time

22.If you have a job, do you prefer morning shifts or evening shifts?

I do, but there are no shifts 😂 but when I did work a job with shifts, I preferred morning! Left me more of my day to enjoy

23. What is something you are most confident about?

How about something you're really insecure about?

For confidence, that I don’t exist to please others, for insecurities, oh GOD so many

24. What do you think in general of girls with short hair? How about guys with long hair?

Whatever floats your boat!!!

25. With films in languages you do not speak, do you prefer a dub or a subtitle?

I’m fine with either!! Once I see it a certain way tho that’s the only way I’ll be able to watch that specific thing

26. If you wear makeup, what are your preferred brands?

I don’t!

27. What part of a person's body do you usually find the most attractive?

Eyes and lips!!

28. What/which music are you currently listening to?

Zero to Hero from Hercules 😂😂😂😂

29. Do you find smoking unattractive?

Yes and no??? I don’t really know how to explain it, I’ve lost grandparents to cancer from smoking, and watched it happen slowly but it’s your choice really 🤷‍♂️

30. What was the last thing you looked up on Google?

ADHD symptoms in adults 😂😭

31. What is the 10th picture in your phone gallery?

A screenshot of jokes about Canada 😂

32. Would you ever dye your hair an unnatural color?

Yeah! I have!! Many many times

33. What job would you be terrible at and what job would you be good at?

For terrible, being a server 😂😂😂 for being good, teaching I think!!

34. Do you think forgiveness is mandatory to move on from something?

Yes BUT not necessarily forgiving whoever messed up

35. What did you think was cool when you were younger?

Motorcycles, tattoos, piercings 😂

36. Is there a place that makes you sad to return to?

So, so many ;-;

37. What's the best advice anyone has ever given you?

Care, but don’t carry

38. Have you ever treated someone badly just because someone else treated you badly?

Not?? That I know of??? I really don’t believe in it

39. What's your favorite lyric from your favorite song right now?

Oh god uhhhhh off the top of my head I really don’t know???

40. What was the last thing that completely took your breath away?

It’s been a while but Whistler!!!

41. Is it true that if you can't love yourself, you can't love another?

I don’t think so, I’ve loved people without loving myself. Loving someone else and loving yourself are two different things

42. What's the most positive thing you could say to yourself right now?

One day at a time 💙 and one thing/problem at a time

43. What time of the day feels the most magical to you?

Night!! It’s quiet, no one expects anything of me, I have nowhere to be and nothing to do

44. Were you a cute baby?

I was SUCH a cute baby 😂😂😂

45. Is there something you wish you had said sorry for, but never did?

I don’t?? Think so??? Usually if I wanna apologize for, I will cuz it’ll literally physically bug me till I do

46. What is any creative talent you wish you had?

Painting 😂😂😂 I can’t paint artistically for shit

47. Do you think you'd make a good teacher? Why or why not?

Yes!! I’m patient and remember to teach the lil details and tricks! Teaching is actually my career goal!

48. Do you think it's possible to fix a "broken" relationship?

Hmmmm, depends what broke it

49. If you chose to get a tattoo what would it be and where would you want it?

I already have 5 😂😂😂😂 I’d want some Runes, some Halo stuff, some forest stuff, some nerd stuff

50. When was the last time you stayed up past midnight and what were you up to?

A couple weekends ago, I was gaming!!

@sagittated there ya go!!!

[lovemesomesurveys]

When was the last time you used a regular telephone?  Like a week or so ago. We do still have a landline that we give out to doctors and such and just use it for the answering machine. I hardly ever use it, but I was listening to a message from my doctor and just called them back on that phone.  How many times have your comments been top comments on YouTube? I don’t know. I don’t go back and check my comments. Would you ever wear a wig?  No, but I kinda want to invest a good quality one. I’ve struggled with keeping up the maintenance of my hair (I dye it) and it’s just a mess. It’s been almost a year now since I’ve last gotten it done and ugh it looks awful. I just don’t have the energy or motivation and my self-care game is weak. I’ve really neglected taking care of myself in a lot of ways. :/ Anyway, a wig would be great for the times in between getting my hair done. I wear a hat every time I go somewhere because I’m self-conscious. What did you learn today? Nothing really so far.  What are you most afraid of? Losing my loved ones, health related stuff and things never getting better/getting worse, and never doing anything with my life and continuing to just waste away.

Are you watching TV as your fill out this survey? No, I’m listening to/watching an ASMR video. Have you ever tried to make a movie? Ha, yeah. We had to make a short movie in a class for high school, but my friend and I  made a couple ourselves just for fun as well. When’s the last time you turned something upside down? The mayo and mustard bottles when making my sandwich last night. Do you read books just for fun? Yeah. I love to read. Do you like the moon or sun more? The moon. Do you have any posters in your room? Yeah. True or False: You burn a CD every day? False. I haven’t burned a CD in years. Do you smile more than you frown? I probably frown more. Do you know anyone named Spencer? No. Spencer Pratt came to mind, though. lol. I’ve seen too much of The Hills recently. When’s the last time you used an envelope? I don’t even remember. Do you sing in the shower? Yeah. I listen to music while in the shower. I have a whole shower playlist. What’s your worst subject? Math & science. Do you ever go to the mall on weekdays? I haven’t been to the mall since like November last year, but I mean yeah I’ve gone on weekdays and weekends. The day didn’t really matter. Would you rather have a million dollars or be able to fly? I’ll take the money. Do you like Friday or Saturday nights more? It doesn’t make a difference to me. Have you ever been ice skating? Nope. Do you hate it when guys treat girls like crap? I hate it when anyone is treated like crap. Do you like turkey or ham more? I’m a turkey gal all way. I’ll eat a spiral ham, which we typically have on Easter and Christmas, but that’s it. When did you realize that Canadian bacon was just ham? I don’t know. I hate it, though. Like the texture alone literally makes me gag. Like I said previously, I’m not big on ham, but I don’t like Canadian bacon at all. Have you ever slapped someone’s butt? Yeah. Do you ever have sleepless nights? Yeppp. What’s something that always comes and goes? Each day. How many pillows do you sleep with? I have like 6 on my bed, but only use 2. Do you want to help save the rainforest? I mean, sure if there’s something I can do. I haven’t actively done anything to do so, though. Do you think dimples are ugly? No. If you could restart your life, would you? I wouldn’t want to restart, I’d just like to change some things. Who is better: Shia Labeouf or Ryan Gosling? Ryan Gosling. What’s a word you use a lot? “Wow.” What’s your favorite food? Still on my sandwich kick that I’ve been on for like a month now. I’ve had at least 1 a day, sometimes 2. I’ve also been hooked on deli pasta salads, ramen, and breakfast burritos. Those things I’ve had just about everyday. Did it snow today where you live? No. It doesn’t snow here. :/

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to be someone else? Yeah, like someone who’s an actual functioning adult for one. Someone who is healthy. Happy. Successful. I’d love to experience that. What’s the last thing you purchased that you couldn’t eat? A shirt. Do you like zebras? Sure. Are you missing anyone right now? Always. Have you ever taken a shower while chewing gum? I probably have. Do you own a pair of striped socks? Yeah. Do you like Converse shoes? Yeah. Do you like Rihanna? Yeah, I like a lot of her songs.

[lillianfromaccounting]

Finally getting around to this!

Was tagged by @cenobitic-anchorite (thank you!)

Putting this under a read more, because I wrote a lot.

1. What is your favorite movie? My answer to this is always Sleeping Beauty because it was the first movie that I stayed up watching with no adults. Like I must have been around 7 and my older cousin was 12 and we stayed up watching it after all the adults went to sleep. So for me, it signified some sort of independence. (On another note, that same cousin and I also stayed up to watch Pretty Woman before I realized what was going on in that movie.)

I know sometimes it’s a cop out answer, because I really can’t pick a favorite live action movie. There’s too many and I love a lot of them. Also, usually, when I say Sleeping Beauty, based on the other person’s reaction, I can tell if they’ll be compatible and/or get my vibe or not.

2.  If you had to drastically change your hair, how would you cut it and what color would you dye it?  I want rainbow hair, but I can’t have that where I work. I’ve been saying I’ve wanted to dye it red for several months now, but haven’t made the appointment yet (long story, but also mostly me dragging my feet). I’ve ALWAYS wanted a pixie cut, but have always been told that my face shape isn’t good for it (I did it senior year of college and there were people who flat out told me never to get that hair cut again). I’ll do it again, when I feel like I have the energy to maintain it.

3.  Can you drive a manual transmission car? lol, no. I can just barely drive an automatic. (Fact: I got my license at age 23 and didn’t regularly drive until 32.)

4.  What’s your favorite thing to cook or bake? Why? Is there a word limit to this? Cuz we’ll be here a few days. lol Favorite thing to bake is scones because I love scones. I also love to bake pumpkin chocolate chip cookies. And anything with a short pastry, so pies, tarts. I LOVE making sweet danishes. Oh crumb cakes. Oooh it’s season for fresh cranberries. I make a really good cranberry lime crumb cake. Cake, in just about every variation (rounds, sheet, cup, etc.) I like these because they’re delicious (and very few bakeries make them well, and I’m a dessert snob. If I’m eating it, it better be worth the calories. I’m also very particular about my cake to frosting/crumb ratio). Also, fact: I suck at baking regular cookies. I can do it, but they never look right and I’m pretty sure I’m screwing up the ratio of dry to wet ingredients or the butter’s not cold enough or something, but yeah, my cookies always look seriously deformed. (yes, I’ve seen that chart that troubleshoots cookies. No, it hasn’t helped.)

Favorite thing to cook. Hm... go to comfort stuff: penne vodka, but really, I like trying new recipes.

5.  How old were you when you got your ears pierced (if your ears aren’t pierced, do you want to get them pierced? The first time I got my ears pierced, I think I was in 8th grade, so 13-ish. After the initial however long it was that you’re supposed to keep them in, I got lazy so I didn’t keep earrings in all the time (and they hurt my ears), so the holes apparently closed. I got them re-pierced in sophomore or junior year of high school and again, after a little while, they closed again. I was thinking about getting them re-pierced again.

6.  Do you like Thanksgiving? Why or why not? I LOVE Thanksgiving. Yes, the historical aspect can go to hell, but personally, I love Thanksgiving. So growing up, being Chinese, we never celebrated American Thanksgiving. When I was about 13, I got a bread making book from the Scholastic book fair and discovered that we had a working oven (Chinese people don’t cook with ovens. We have a wok and a rice cooker. That’s really all you need.). Anyway, I started baking bread and it was amazing.

Also, our local supermarket would do the holiday promotion of if you spend $X, you can get a free holiday protein, and being a household of 8 (sometimes 10), we hit that spending threshold very, very quickly. So one year, I told my mom that we’re getting a turkey, instead of the ham that she likes. She was skeptical, but I was hell bent on celebrating American Thanksgiving and figuring out what this whole turkey hoopla was about.

I started cooking a Thanksgiving feast for my family (immediate and extended) from the age of 14. I did a sticky rice stuffing in the bird. Mashed sweet potatoes (no marshmallow. it’s sweet enough by itself.) I always made a lasagna (with cheese from DiPalo’s, where I would wait hours on line for our order) or another pasta dish. We did Chinese vegetables. And every year, we would pick new recipes we’d want to try. By ‘we’, I mean me. I would pick new recipes that I’d want to try and my three younger siblings would be obligatory sous chefs. And since bread baking happened in the wee early hours of the morning, we would have it for breakfast. So then I expanded the menu to include breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It became an all day thing and I was (and still am) obsessed.

Oh, it probably also helped to know that I come from a very large extended family and everyone would come through our house during holidays. Usually, it’s because my family hosted the mah jong parties, so we were kinda party central. My biggest Thanksgiving, we had about 50 people cycle through the house that day, so I had to make sure I had food enough for 50 people. Growing up, I’m pretty sure we never had less than 30. (It’s been a shock for me these past several years when we’ve hosted less than 20 people on turkey day.)

Then, my siblings would find recipes that they want to try, and Thanksgiving was this day where we would try food. Not all the recipes worked out, but no one ever got sick or food poisoning (oh man, I have stories from adjacent family members). But yeah. It’s an insane production and I love every minute of it (especially since my mom did the clean up, because bless that woman, she messed up Jiffy corn bread mix when she tried to bake, so she sticks to cleaning).

Anyway, after I got married, I demanded Thanksgiving, which my in-laws didn’t care about because they were getting it catered anyway. But I found out the hard way that they’ve sucked the soul out of my Thanksgiving festivities. One person demanded Stove Top (over fresh sausage dressing?!??!!). Fine. Another prefers roasted turkey (as opposed to smoked or fried). Year after year, they keep telling me to make less food, because they don’t enjoy watching me cook (they think I work too hard, but they also don’t understand that I’m having the time of my life).

At this point, I know that in order to get back to the Thanksgiving that I want to celebrate, it will be after that generation has passed. It’s fine.

I used to start planning my Thanksgiving menu in March, studying recipes and picking and choosing stuff up until like two weeks before hand. Ever since the kids came along, that excitement has also waned. But I’m excited for this year. There will be apple cider mimosas. And I’m roasting a savory pumpkin. And there will be artichokes. Oh and one of my good friends went to Dominique Ansel Kitchen’s pie night this year and had a poached pear chocolate pie that she said was divine. I am attempting to recreate it based on her descriptions of the textures and her pictures. This is what I live for.

(where the fuck is that barney stinson challenge accepted gif when you need it?)

and yes, this year will be my 24th year cooking Thanksgiving dinner.

7.  If you could live in the world of one film, which one would you pick? Oh man. D2: The Mighty Ducks. Ok, I lied. I do have a favorite live action movie. I wish I had a more creative answer to this. Yeah, Harry Potter’s world would be cool. Yeah, I identify with hobbits. Any of the Star Treks would also be good in terms of universes. But I want Adam Banks to teach (13-14 year old) me how to ice skate.

8.  What kind of pet have you never had, but have always wanted? lol one of my bffs and I always wanted a baby panda.

9.  If you won the huge lottery, what would be the first 3 things you’d do?Get a good fucking lawyer, set up a shell foundation so it’s not listed in mine or my husband’s name, prepare to disappear after a couple of years of acting normal. Then, for the more fun three, pay off debt, travel, get a house somewhere the fuck else.

Ceno’s answer was too perfect, so I left it, mainly because I’d pretty much do the same. I’d buy my parents a new house and hire a chauffeur for them. Also @katiekeysburg will get a chauffeur. And I’d throw money at teleportation research. And fund a bunch of gofundmes.

10.  Have you ever gotten a tattoo? What is it? If you haven’t, do you want one? I do not have any but I’ve always wanted one of my Chinese name above my ankle and I’ve always wanted the pi character somewhere (debated various locations). One day, when I get the guts to. (and when it’s seasonally appropriate to get one above my ankle, cuz omg I never knew about the various care required while it heals.)

11.  What’s the stupidest thing you’ve ever done? hahaha um. Probably calling the cops on an online friend who I thought was going to kill himself, but he really wasn’t (but I didn’t know that). (hey kids, don’t put your addresses in your aol profiles--yes I’m ancient.) actually, I’ve done my share to stupid aol/online shit. it will probably come back to haunt me if i ever run for public office or marry a celebrity.

Ok, real stupid thing. I’m a severe klutz, and one time I walked off a raised cement slab (like the kind that statues would sit on) and sprained my ankle. It was probably 3 inches off the ground on the side that I got on it, but it was further off the ground on the other side, so when I got off the slab, I misjudged where to put my foot and I rolled my ankle. Ended up at the ER and they put me in a soft cast. I had to have crutches to get around campus and this one guy who I don’t even know his name, picked me up and carried me up the campus hill (we had a really big hill), and it was against my consent. I did NOT want him to pick me up. It was terrible. Anyway, I rolled my ankle by walking. I have tons of stupid shit. How much time you got?

I was also pretty pretentious when I was younger. (I might still be. I’m not as self aware as I wish to be.) I once asked an Italian friend to try my tomato sauce and asked him what was missing because it didn’t taste right. (I know. I was so gross. You learn from your own grossness though.)

What other stupidity? I fawned over boys. My bff gave me a copy of The Giving Tree in college (I had never read it before) as a metaphor of how much of myself I gave to this toxic dude. I sobbed reading it for the first time.

In hindsight, not getting my license at 17 was a pretty stupid move too. But that also had to do with life circumstances.

OH. Turning down an interview for an internship with my dream company at the time, because I had already accepted an internship position with another company.

Trying to explain to my MBA ethics class how my industry worked only to get it mansplained back to me (pretty stupid of me to have tried in the first place).

Going for my MBA was also a pretty stupid move in the holistic view of my life.

12.  Have you accomplished your New Year’s Resolution for 2018? I honestly don’t remember if I even made resolutions, so I’m going to say hard no.

13.  If you could get any degree from any school, free of charge, what would you pick? Criminal Psychology. Ceno, we can go to school together! (this reminds me I need to catch up on last week’s Criminal Minds) Another option would be anything in the forensics sciences. I would also like to learn massage therapy. And I want to take that artisan bread breaking course at the Institute of Culinary Education.

I forget how many people I’m supposed to tag. @katiekeysburg @daisyjm75 @steverogersnotebook

[mtnp0410]

FLAWLESS EYEBROWS IN 4 EASY STEPS  | EYEBROW 64114

It’s the 21st century and I don’t think I have to explain so much about the importance of eyebrows to your appearance. Take a look at any red carpet and you will see hundreds of celebrities who had their eyebrows either microbladed or tattooed. Our brows have an unmatched ability to bring proportion to our face, highlight our overall facial structures and frame our eyes beautifully. Unfortunately, not everyone is blessed with luscious brow hair to enhance their natural features and balance them out. If you weren’t born with beautiful eyebrows, makeup can transform the look of even the sparsest set into thicker looking, bolder looking beauties. But with busy mornings and long days leaving no time for touch-ups, wouldn’t it be great if there was a more permanent solution? You’re at the right place! The steps to incredible brows are now revealed in this article.

HOW ARE EYEBROWS DEFINED TO BE PERFECT?

The best eyebrows should be the ones that suit your face the most! You have to consider the shape, thickness, definition, length, and color when it comes to brows. Just surfing the internet to find those tips, or consulting with an expert for advice. Nowadays, most nail salons provide eyebrow services from simple to complex, such as threading, waxing, tinting, microblading, etc. Filling in your brows is the quickest and easiest way to instantly make you look more polished and put together. Before going to a permanent makeup clinic, conducting an investigation on the top-reviewed beauty salons near you is recommended. With the help of a specialist, your eyebrows will always be on point. Take a deep look at these guidelines to find out how brows can flatter your face and make your selfies pop!

STEP 1: EYEBROW HAIR REMOVAL

Permanent hair-free solutions these days are tweezing, waxing, threading, and laser hair removal technology. Each comes with its own set of pros and cons.

Threading allows for a detailed definition of the brow shape. If you're looking to add an arch or let your brows grow wild for a bit, threading can be a fast way to amp up your shape. The technique requires a threading expert to roll two cotton pieces of thread over the surface of the skin, driving unwanted hair out of the follicle. Sadly, threading breaks the hair, which could cause it to grow in different directions. The hair will grow back in faster, because hair is broken instead of fully removed.

Preparation: Be sure to call your threading salon ahead of time and inquire about their practice before making your appointment.

For those who favor efficiency, waxing might be for you. Waxing, if performed correctly, is much more gentle on hair follicles and skin. Waxing eyebrows is a longer-lasting method of brow shaping in-salon hair removal technique. Waxing pulls off the waxed strips in the direction of hair growth, but the biggest downside of this process is the pain. If you have thicker, coarser hair that grows back quickly, waxing is the best option for shaping. It also encourages thinner, softer regrowth.

Preparation: Before waxing, it is important to review the different types of wax available and investigate their ingredients for potential allergic reactions. With the proper product, waxing can be easy, but it is also vital to use the proper method to avoid catastrophic results.

Tweezing removes hair from the root and trimming is done after brushing through the brow thoroughly. With tweezing, you can pencil your eyebrows in their desired shape, and then tweeze around that, using it as a guideline. This method has an edge in that it appears to be the easiest one to do it yourself. If you don't trust yourself with a tweezer and scissors, visit a professional for a brow-shaping session every four to six weeks.

Preparation: A good pair of tweezers is a solid investment. And say no to magnifying mirrors–you will be more prone to over-plucking or messing up your arch.

If you're not happy with shaving, tweezing, or waxing to remove unwanted hair, laser treatment may be worth considering. It beams highly concentrated light into hair follicles. Pigment in the follicles absorb the light. That destroys the hair. While lasers are becoming more common and effective as technology advances, they're not exactly sensible for all types of hair removal.

Preparation: Make sure your skin is clean before every treatment. One more thing, trends come and go, and we recommend proceeding with true caution if you are planning on taking a permanent laser to your eyebrows.

Now before you go reaching for the best way to change the shape of your eyebrows, it would be best to seek the help of a brow expert. The method means a lot, but it’s really about the person doing your brows. You need to make sure that person understands the shape, and that comes from experience. The specialists are able to map out the shape that you want and can help you identify areas you may need to thicken up or grow in in order to achieve the desired shape. A good brow stylist doesn’t only shape but can lighten, darken, shape and even lift your brows.

STEP 2: EYEBROW SHAPING

When it comes to achieving the perfect brow shape, it is not as easy as it looks. Well-sculpted eyebrows complement your face and help you look younger. But, like everything in life, one size doesn’t fit all, and it’s insane how finding the right brow shape to flatter your face can improve symmetry and even knock years off. Just continue reading below to see how to take your brow game to the next level, and make sure you take what I shared with you to your next appointment

Your perfect brows depend on your unique face shape and dimensions. Firstly you need to establish which face shape you have. This will help you start to identify what eyebrow shape suits you best.

Heart faces: Try rounded brows to soften your face shape.

Square faces: Try thick, flat brows with a soft arch to soften the angles of your face and add depth.

Rectangular faces: Try slightly curved brows

Round faces: Try high arched brows to lengthen your face.

Oval faces: Try soft, angled brows to help balance your facial features.

Long faces: Try straight brows to add width to your face.

Diamond faces: Try curved brows to shorten your face.

Shaping your eyebrows is a major skill: it’s kinda like art and geometry combined because to find the perfect arch, it’s all about the angles and proportions of your face shape. When you shape your brows, they should be balanced and as symmetrical as possible. Find your ideal brow shape, accentuate your best features, and minimize makeup use. Eyebrows can be hard to get right, and figuring out the best look definitely isn’t easy, but don’t worry, the expert technicians will consult with you and offer their advice if needed.

STEP 3: PERMANENT EYEBROWS

Over a decade ago, tattooed eyebrows brought the pretty and natural looking result. However, the “tattoos” of today are a whole different game than the aforementioned brow pigmentation. Over the last few years, since bold, full brows have come back into fashion and microblading has exploded in popularity, a number of new tools and techniques have been introduced to the market offering polished-looking brows on a semi-permanent and short-term basis. From tinting and threading to microblading and lamination, the beauty industry has caught up with the demand for contemporary eyebrow treatments. It’s a lot easier now for both men and women to get the look of fuller, or more defined brows every day without having to fuss with eye pencils, gels and powders.

Nowadays, permanent brow makeup focuses on mimicking real brow hairs. That’s why microblading technique (also known as 3D eyebrow embroidery) has completely revolutionized eyebrow tattooing, and this trend shows no signs of slowing down. Unlike traditional tattoos that last forever, microblading gives you semi permanent eyebrows and helps to add the appearance of hairs to create a natural-looking, fuller brow effect. Microblading uses a pen-like hand tool with a blade made up of needles to etch hair strokes into the skin. Needles are drug across the skin, creating a fine cut where pigment can be placed in the skin. You draw the outline with a brow pencil, and then you use a specialized needle tool to fill inside the shape with strokes. The brow effect is comprised of many thin, crisp lines that are meant to mimic the natural look and texture of hair. It won't have any borders. A unique combination of dye is mixed to closely mimic the natural brow color of each client. Though the procedure sounds a bit uncomfortable, a numbing solution is applied beforehand to minimize any pain. Once done, the outcome will last up to 18 months. To prevent pigment wearing off, a retouching of the eyebrows is suggested once a year, to keep the color and shape of brows.

Someone who likes dark, full brows, and fills them in everyday, probably won’t be satisfied by microblading. Ahead, there is another brow technique which is usually a good idea if you want to create fullness and thickness in the middle of your brow.

A popular eyebrow system from ancient days is eyebrow tattooing. The most traditional tattooing methods involve the insertion of a needle or needles into the skin in a tapping motion. Tattooed brows are usually done by a handpiece machine, with much greater injury to the skin. This movement forces a lot of pigment into the skin, causing the tattoo to last. Eyebrow tattoo offers a permanent makeup solution for those who want stunning brows. This form of cosmetic tattooing, known also as derma-pigmentation or micro-pigmentation. With brow pigmentation, a regular tattoo needle is used, meaning the final product is composed of many tiny dots of pigments that create the illusion of a completely filled-in brow. Because of this, the finished tattoo is pretty much permanent, like a regular tattoo, with only a few touch-ups needed to maintain it, which saves many people money in the long run, and makes the maintenance of brows so much easier. Tattoo artists use ink while they are performing eyebrow tattoo procedure. With brow tattooing, the range of shades is limited to normal tattoo inks, whereas in the microblading technique, a blend of red, green, and other dye pigments are used to create an infinite variety of shades based on the client’s preference. There are a wide variety of eyebrows that can be produced with traditional tattooing, the most common being the following: Hair-Stroke or Feathered Brows, Soft or Powdered Eyebrow, Hard or Crisp Eyebrow.

Eyebrow tattoos are permanent. Once the ink is tattooed onto the skin it is there for life unless you go for removal procedures which can be costly. The semi-permanent nature of microblading allows patients the ability to alter the shape, color, and the size of their brows depending on what they desire. With microbladed brows, clients can change the appearance of their brow as trends change. Beauty trends aren't for women only, men can follow the trends too. Men traditionally don't get eyebrow tattooing, but men do get microblading.

Preparation: Listen up because if you decide to get your brows done, this part is very important:

Two weeks prior to your appointment stop using any skin thinners (vitamin A, glycolic acids, exfoliation) on the brow area.

Try not to take fish oil for a few days prior as it thins your blood which can tend to push out the pigment.

If you tint your eyebrows, tint it at least one week prior to the procedure.

Don't drink the night before, your pain threshold will be low if you are hungover. It’s not fun having your brows tattooed with a pounding headache.

Brow tattoo specialists will not be able to tattoo over any blemishes, sores, and moles in or around the brow area.

Getting a tattoo can be relatively painful, especially if they are placed in a sensitive area like the face. The microblading technique involves much less discomfort, especially if the brow area is numbed with lidocaine prior to treatment.

Besides the possible injuries, it is also very important to set your budget and to know your preference.

STEP 4: AFTERCARE FOR EYEBROW TREATMENT

It is normal for your eyebrows to appear very dark after the procedure. They will fade 10-50% in the first 1-3 weeks following.

Do not touch the tattooed area with your fingers right after your treatment at the salon. This increases your risk of infection. Cosmetic tattoos take between 4-6 weeks to fully heal. At this time you may receive your touch-up if any color has faded, or if you would simply like to add more definition to your tattoo.

Depending on your skin type, you may need to apply a protective and soothing balm across the brows when dry or itchy.

If you have oily skin, the wound will “self-heal” and not require any further nourishment. I suggest avoiding creamy moisturisers, serums with active ingredients and oils near the brow line as the more dry the skin is kept, the better the retention of the pigment in the skin. Anything oily will blur the crisp lines which were created during the procedure.



It’s best to avoid vigorous sports or exposure to moisture, which means protection in the shower is vital for roughly five to seven days. You should also stay out of direct sunlight. Do not scrub or pick at the tattooed area. Doing so can cause the pigment underneath to be pulled out. Allow the epithelial skin to flake off by itself. Stay away from dying or bleaching eyebrows, the chemicals could cause damage to face skin too.

Remember to schedule a touch up appointment within 2-3 months. Permanent makeup is an art and not a science. Everyone’s results will vary and you may still need to use pencil or powder.

CONCLUSION:

Eyebrows play a vital role in everyone’s faces so do not mess them up. An eyebrow studio is rated as good when it meets these requirements: certified technicians, hygienic conditions, authentic products, and smooth performances. Any tattoo, whether artistic or cosmetic, requires skill with the needles in use. Poor ability to use these tools increases the risk of scarring, migration of the tattoo, and excessive trauma to the skin. Because of the nature of the technique, microblading has a higher risk of negative side effects in the hands of an inexperienced technician. When done correctly, a permanent cosmetic treatment can be a safe and wonderful option to ease your daily make-up routine. Don’t hesitate to make an appointment with a professional beauty spa that offers high-quality permanent makeup procedures.

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FOREVER BROW | EYEBROW 64114

1024 W 103rd St Kansas City, MO 64114

816-808-7000

hongbui40@gmail.com