#needlenailed

So everybody's been making art and talking about...

{ ok but consider: Hornet also has a similar mouth bc she’s a hecking spider }

And look--it’s catered to bring you all in. Isn’t he nice? (Or devious...?)

“Alright. Thank you all for coming this evening--it’s been fairly slow for a while, but spring is approaching, and there’s about to be a rapid change in pace. I don’t have any solid data on Spirale’s springtime numbers, but I have a few estimates. So--I’ll get to those first. If you look at the table to your left, I’ve found some new inspirations and materials to work with.”

And true to his word, there were a few new fabrics and dyes under a black light, which glowed brilliantly due to the corals of the Swirling Gulf. Beside that were some budding flowers and various other flora from the Mistwood. Beside it were photos of the marvelous landscapes of the wards, for inspiration.

“Ideally, I’d love to play off of themes on the environment of the island. See me for any materials, and if you’d like something specific, I’ll see if I can cover the cost through the business. I want to try and show pieces that are a little on the unorthodox side; be creative. Now--”

To the crowd of workers, he turned.

“Marceline and Haruna, feel free to draft whatever you can. Hornet and I will try to interpret your ideas into tangible clothes.

“Houka and Peridot, you’re on repairs, but I’d love to have some pieces showcasing the technological side of the city. I think it’d be satisfying seeing one of our pieces in High Roller, don’t you?

“Zal, Lux, Martel and Yuki, I’d like you to try and do something a little different. I’ve actually made uniforms for all of you with a spring theme in mind. I trust you’ll wear them proudly. If the rest of you would like to join, I would be very pleased with you.

“And finally, Lady Yotsuyu, I’m going to challenge your use of contrast in most of your everyday outfits. Hopefully you spellbind any woman you come across. Chuck, I would also like to bring you out of your shell a bit. Garner wonder and attention.”

A clap of his hands, and he almost (almost!) looked delighted with everyone.

“Well! You have your instructions. Please see me for any further assistance. I’m increasing our hours as the daylight grows, so please look at your schedules. Good luck!”

(And if you would like to make your springtime uniform, you can use this website. I’ll post them to the Dressed to Kill blog!)

(Tags under cut!)

If they got too close to K’horii, they might start experiencing some pretty gnarly mind-altering effects that would be likely to impose panic, if not sheer terror. This is, of course, provided that you haven’t been incinerated to some level already.

(tl;dr: It’s a pretty bad idea, Scoob.)

Hollow is jittery. Then again, Hollow is always jittery in public-- even if they have one of their siblings by their side.

Why were they even out here with them at a usually-seen ungodly time in the morning? Simple-- they were out of a few food ingredients. Most of them. Mainly the expensive spices. And Eggs. They’ve been making a lot of egg-related foods recently. Probably because rich foods tended to stay with you longer, in this cold weather.

They’re in their usual position, hunched over with their left hand digging nails into their still-broken right. Taking in a slow breath, they enter the store, making a small hand gesture of “I’m fine.” to Ghost, as they were getting a worried look.

They pick up a basket and warily pad into isle where most of the things they need are. They keep glancing to the sides every few seconds just to keep their nerves steady as they gather the items they need.

And then, when they’re stocking up on eggs, they have a temporary lapse in awareness and almost grab someone else’s hand as they reach for eggs. 

An involuntary screech leaves their throat, and they quickly dash behind Ghost, crouching down as much as they can to hide behind them. Their black eyes are wide and their uninjured arm is up in a fist, twitching.

...Red? And white hair...? Was this their supposed half-sister they’ve never met? Hah, no, the odds of that happening were stupidly small. They’re just going to stay assuming stranger for now and keep trying to hide behind Ghost in their hoodie.

{ i think the anon might have been referring to flatworms? those are little tiny worms that do regenerate into two separate worms if cut in half, scientific name planaria - they live in ponds and at least one kind looks like it has googly eyes }

Oh, that would make sense! I didn’t know that about flatworms either so I’ve learned another interesting fact today! Nature is wild.

There is a misconception that earthworms do regenerate if cut in half, which to my knowledge they do not (one half just dies, if the other half survives), but it might have come from flatworms being able to do that in the first place, which is an interesting thought.

(also the number one thing I enjoy about people showing up in my inbox and replies is that I am learning so much stuff about bugs at a RAPID PACE and it’s great

They know battle probably better than anything else. Back in Hallownest, combat was all they had ever known, and even in Spirale, they’d been growing restless without it. 

They don’t understand what Oifuco says, but they can appreciate someone rebelling against their creator, and so they fight to see tomorrow.

It’s a familiar rhythm, though with a lot more combatants involved. Having all of their abilities back helps; they can use the techniques from the Nailmasters, now, or dive into enemies and bowl them over with a burst of Void energy. Every hit they take, they easily heal just by slipping back out of the fray for a few moments.

Maybe Grimm had a point when he called their fight a dance.

Ghost isn’t worried about their siblings--they know Hollow and Hornet can handle themselves. They can’t find Otus or Quirrel, but have to assume at least Quirrel is doing all right by himself, and Otus has friends behind him. So they fight for their own sake...until a blur of red flies past them.

They shoot off a Shade Soul, dissolving the twisted quadruped they’d been engaged with, and glance over to watch Hornet go. She seems to be heading towards the center of the fray, towards Oifuco and the Dark Lord...

What is she doing? Does she...does she think she can take them on herself?

Quickly, they sheathe their nail, and make several Shade Dashes forward. They make sure the last dash is directly through her to get her attention, before they land on their feet and turn around, waving their arms out to their sides in front of her. They don’t have the time to get out their phone, nor the wherewithal to use words properly, but the message is still clear.

Spells like these can only be cast on oneself. As any spell can be learned by anyone, you could merely teach this spell to the people you need to use it however.

“All right, all right, no need to point that thing at me.”

There’s still magic burning in his veins, and he has certain combat advantages, but he isn’t particularly interested in picking a fight the way this one seems to be. Granted, he supposes the reaction is reasonable; he may have gotten one of the other newly-christened demons to get him a hood, but that didn’t really hide much.

The appearance of this one does catch his attention, though, and he frowns, brows knitting.