The Mushroom Kingdom

[By Bi Blitz]

Mark Hyun

With: Hope l Activity: Looking for a new game l Status: Healthy l Relationship Status: Single

Even as Hope confirmed he was okay it didn't stop Mark from apologizing profusely. If only he hadn't opened his big mouth then that wouldn't have happened in the first place! Yeah his eyes were really nice to look at but he shouldn't have even spoken up and just played the game and that was it. However the sound of the other chuckling and laughing a little caught Mark's attention as his gray gaze slowly lifted up to blink in surprise at him. Had he said something funny? Was it his apology that was funny? Well he did begin to ramble on so that was more than likely it and he could feel his cheeks warm once again and opened his mouth to apologize for apologizing in such a silly way but stopped himself. He needed to not make it any worse for himself. He was just glad though the other found it amusing enough to laugh over, he must have been fine if that were the case. Now it was his turn for his already red tinted cheeks to deepen even more so when he was called a nice person "...You think?" he questioned the other man. Mark had wanted to dispute the claim immediately but remembered his talks with his therapist on how his desire to belittle himself needed to stop. To learn to just take a compliment when he received one and not try to downplay himself. It was hard at first since it was just reflex and he seldom ever got compliments from people but he was getting better. Mark would then nod his head "Y..yeah I don't mind at all, our basketball game didn't really go over well..." he would then nod his head as he began to walk past the games, noticing the dented rim of the basketball hoop, just how hard had hope thrown it? For someone so scrawny looking he must have been deceivingly strong. Either way it would only take a couple seconds before coming across a new game that caught his eye. It was a rhythm game that could hold two players where you'd sit down and hit oversized piano keys to match what was appearing on screen "How about this one? It looks pretty fun" he knew that Hope said he didn't mind anything but Mark still only asked out of courtesy. He would then pull out a quarter and sat down on the single long bench, turning to the other and forcing himself to look up and try to meet the others gaze with a small smile. His therapist had also tried working on getting him to look up more, it was a struggle that he still dealt with but he did try when he thought about it.

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yo punny nut

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[By Bi Blitz]

Mark Hyun

With: Nobody l Activity: Playing a game l Status: Healthy l Relationship Status: Single

Mark had put in a new application at a local store so hopefully he could actually succeed in this interview. Damen had helped him quite a bit and while the young man wasn't completely sure of himself yet he thought that maybe there was some kind of chance for a loser like him. So he'd come to the Mushroom Kingdom once again to take his mind off of the possible interview he may or may not get as well as his newest friends latest absence. He'd become so accustomed to having Damen to hang out with these last couple days that it did feel rather lonely without him. However Mark had already pestered him more than enough so he figured this would be a day for him to leave the older man to his own life. From there Mark would pull out some quarters and put them into a two person zombie shooter where he'd begin to shoot the zombies after going through the absolutely bare bones opening that would set the premise of a "Story" for these arcade shooters. From there he'd begin shooting away at zombie after zombie while moving along the on rails shooter.

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Fantom Leo XXII

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[Fantom Leo XXII]

'Even snow has its layers.'
-Old Halteese saying

Alison Arondight

A woman walked up to the game that Mark was playing and watched him for a few moments. She stood just far enough back that it didn't seem weird, but her presence could be felt by the young man. She watched how he handled the gun controller. Where he aimed the cursor before firing. She stepped slightly to the side so she was now in Mark's periphery, watching him as he completed the first stage of the game. She was wearing a torn pink shirt with black strikes and abstract lines on the front, denim jeans that matched the style of the shirt.
As the second stage started up, she put coins into the machine and picked up the player 2 controller.

She started off pretty bad. It was apparent she didn't have much experience with arcade games. Before the end of the first act of the second chapter she had to insert more coins in order to continue playing. Mainly, her issue was that she ignored consistent points like body shots and went for the more high-risk-high-reward shots, like the head or small weak points that dealt bonus damage.

If Mark had ever looked over to her their eyes would have met, as she kept looking over at him as she played. But she said nothing.

By the end of the second chapter, she was still peddling behind him in scores. However, her score was starting to increase faster. Her shots were lining up easier.
'Ya know, you're pretty bad at this game,' She said finally, a smile formed from her soft lips. 'I mean, really bad. Like, probably better than other amateurs and all, but you're definitely lacking.' She kept glancing at Mark as she said this, still smiling. Though from her profile it looked more like a smirk. 'I could show you how to up your game if you want?'

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By Bi Blitz

 

[By Bi Blitz]

Mark Hyun

With: A girl l Activity: Playing a game l Status: Healthy l Relationship Status: Single

As Mark played the game he hadn't even noticed the woman behind him watching him play. As he focused on the game before him he'd shoot yet another zombie when out of the corner of his eye he saw the woman still watching him play and it instantly set him on edge. He however calmed his nerves a bit as he shot another zombie, no big deal. She was just watching him play, just because it was a girl didn't mean anything and she was probably just watching him play to see if she wanted to join or not. And it seemed that he was right as she had wordlessly joined him in the game and the two of them soon began to go through the zombie hordes together. However it was then that he'd glance over and their eyes would meet and instantly he'd divert his gaze back to the screen before him. However out of his peripheral vision he saw he continuing to look over at him but never saying anything, by this point Mark's anxiety was starting to get to him and his palms began to sweat as his grip on the plastic gun tightened a bit. Why was she staring at him? Did he have something on his face? Was he playing strangely? He couldn't figure it out and Mark's hands began to tremble a little bit as his nerves began to get the best of him. However thankfully the second half of the chapter came along and he was able to focus more on the game before the two of them. He noted that she seemed to be improving fast as her aim began to improve and she landed more headshots while Mark himself mostly aimed for the body, only getting a headshot if he was lucky. However her first words to Mark caused him to falter a little bit as he glanced over to the girl before quickly diverting his gaze downward "I..I'm sorry...?" just as he figured she insulted him but at least it was only about the game and not his person...yet. Mark would then glance up for a moment as he quickly removed a hand from the gun as a cutscene played to pull the sleeves of his jacket back down as they began to fall up his arms. He'd then nod his head a little bit as Mark glanced off to the side "Um...o..ok...." well if she was going to offer him help with the game who was he to decline, he probably was pretty bad at the game if she was able to catch up to his score so quickly.

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Fantom Leo XXII

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[Fantom Leo XXII]

'Even snow has its layers.'
-Old Halteese saying

Alison Arondight

On Mark's answer the woman's smile curled in an almost mischievous way, as if she already knew what his response would be. In one swift movement she was next to him. And suddenly their bodies were so close without actually touching, their shoulders less than an inch from one another.
She removed her left hand from her gun controller and placed it at the bottom of Mark's gun. She lightly pinched the bottom of the barrel with her index and thumb. She was leaning more to the left to look down Mark's sight. Inhaling from the nose, Mark would be able to smell the lavender wafting from her hair.

'See, the problem is that you keep going for the easy shots,' She said to him softly, as if she didn't want anyone else to hear what she was saying. 'Which, like, is okay and whatever. But it's boring, and you won't really improve. You gotta go for the harder shots, cuz they'll give you more points.'

When the next target appeared she pushed his barrel ever so slightly upwards. The shot went wide.
'Tch,' the woman expressed disappointment from the result. 'Don't fight me on the controller. Just--' Whether or not he was actually resisting her moving his barrel seemed irrelevant to her. And she was, at least, still smiling.

She kept trying to line up his shots while also attempting to do the same with her own gun, they only barely made it through the next chapter. 'See? If you keep practicing like that you'll get leagues better, trust me.'

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By Bi Blitz

 

[By Bi Blitz]

Mark Hyun

With: A girl l Activity: Playing a game l Status: Healthy l Relationship Status: Single

It was so fast that Mark didn't even have time to fully process what was happening. One moment this girl was insulting him while they played the game and now here she was, so close that she was practically on top of him. His heart began to pound in his chest as she positioned herself to hold both his and her own gun. Why on earth did she have to be so close!? He could feel his face begin to turn a violent red that went down his neck as he tried his hardest to focus on her words. Harder shots, yeah. Uh huh. It was near impossible to focus as Mark was doing everything he could to keep from panicking both inside and out. By now Mark's hand was barely able to keep the gun aimed upwards so when they missed the shot he simply murmured another apology as they managed to barely make it to the next chapter. The young man took a deep breath to calm his nerves, the scent of lavender reached him but it did little to help calm him. If anything it made it worse as it only reminded him of just how close she was to him. Finally Mark barely nodded his head at her next comment, hoping that she'd finally remove herself from his personal bubble as he pulled the trigger, actually landing a headshot this time around on the zombie.

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Fantom Leo XXII

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[Fantom Leo XXII]

'Even snow has its layers.'
-Old Halteese saying

Alison Arondight

Noticing the color-change in Mark's face, the girl's smile grew and she giggled deviously. 'What's the matter? Never been this close to a girl before?' Her meadow-green eyes flitted up and down, scanning his posture, his body language, facial expression. 'Oh my god, you really ARE shaking! Ahahaha!' The girl's giggle burst into a devilish laughter as she continued to lambaste the poor man. 'It's like you're scared of me or something! Afraid I'll eat you like one of these zombies, right!? Hehehe! Man, I always thought loners were actually GOOD at arcade games! AHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!'

She stopped after a few more seconds of laughter and took a full stride back into her starting position. Looking back at the screen, a small shade of red powdered her grinning cheeks and she brushed her golden hair backwards. 'You know, if something-- or... you know, someONE is bothering you so much, you should say something.' Her voice had gone from patronizing to sincere. She took a deep breath and said nothing for a while after, letting the game play out without so much as a peep.
Instead, however, if at any time Mark went for body or easy shots, the girl would take a step towards him. She was only four steps away. Which meant in four steps, she would be right where she was when she had been, helping and taunting him. But for every head/difficult shot he attempted, she would move a step back to her starting position.

By the end of the final chapter, the girl looked satisfied and she placed the gun controller back in its holster. 'I had fun, but I'm sure I'd totes beat you if I had started from chapter 1.'

Mark's 'victory' would be however many steps away she still was from him. At four steps meant he had mostly gone for head-shots, hitting them was not important. The amount of steps away in accordance to Mark's willingness to risk the higher-scoring shots was important because... the girl seemed to measure the amount of personal space she was willing to give him on this factor. She playfully leaned forward as she spoke again, but took a measured step back to ensure her body was still the same distance away as her foot was previously.
'So, any other game a LONER like you is good at that I can totally whip you at? Oh! What about this one?' She motioned to one of the dancing arcade games. 'I bet you play this one too, riiiight??'

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By Bi Blitz

 

[By Bi Blitz]

Mark Hyun

With: A girl l Activity: Playing a game l Status: Healthy l Relationship Status: Single

Mark couldn't help it as she soon began to tease him even further about the redness in his face which only made the problem worse. But then it only got worse and worse as any and all self confidence he had went right out the window when she began to giggle and laugh as his trembling. By now Mark had all but closed up as he could feel some moisture in his eyes. He wanted nothing more than to find somewhere to hide and escape the girl's horrible mockery. This was why girls made him so nervous, they were so quick to make fun of him, at least if a guy mocked him it was usually followed by a beating. Physical wounds he could heal from but having someone berate and laugh at him for things he couldn't help could have him bedridden for days on end. When she began to laugh at him once more Mark only shrunk down even more, even going as far as to pull the hood of his jacket over his head as some kind of barrier between him and her 'Because you do scare me....' he thought pathetically to himself as Mark simply lowered his gun and stopped playing with the last few zombies. Damen had worked hard and helping him build his confidence up to be a better person but it was almost laughable how easily someone was able to tear it all down.The shift in her tone had Mark even more on guard as she tried to say that he should speak up. Oh so now she wanted to pretend to help him? Mark wasn't foolish enough to fall for that old trick. Act like you cared only to mock him relentlessly when he opened up even a little bit or took their advice. But then she had the idea that Mark would play a dancing game with her of all things? Mark soon took a step back as his watery eyes remained glued to the floor before he quickly turned on his heel and rushed to the back of the Arcade where he ran into the men's room. From there he'd lock himself inside one of the stalls as he sat down on one of the toilets where a few stray sobs came from him. He was soft and he hated it, he hated himself for not being able to stand up for himself. He just needed to stay there and collect himself, then he could just leave the arcade. She'd probably lose interest in him anyway.

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Fantom Leo XXII

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[Fantom Leo XXII]

'Even snow has its layers.'
-Old Halteese saying

Alison Arondight

'Hey, wait!' the girl called out as Mark ran towards the back of the Mushroom Kingdom, no doubt there was only one place he could be going.

As per the usual, Alison had scared off yet another person. She sighed in exasperation and gave a halfhearted chase. She knew where he was going so there was no reason to exhaust herself in pursuit. She deliberately took three minutes making it to the entrance of the men's room. This was to give the young man time to recoup. She opened the door without a second thought and entered. It was empty, save for a single stall that was closed. Soft whimpers could be heard coming from it. She bit down the immediate urge to... 'comment'... on the sound, but instead forced a monotone 'Hey,' to announce her presence in the bathroom.
Keeping an eye on the stall door in case he tried to make a brake for it, she took up the stall to his left, closer to the restroom door, closed herself in, and sat down. After another 60 seconds, she let out a deep sigh.

'I'm sorry,' Alison managed. 'For being a d-bag. I was just trying to be friendly, I guess I got too into it and... well, I guess I said some things I probably shouldn't have. It's kinda a problem I've had since middle school.' She gave a small chuckle. 'Ya know, my friends used to tell me I'd be cuter if I'd just learn when to shut the hell up. I used to think they were just being d-bags, too.'

A pause.

'Look, I'm not here to hurt you, or eat you, or steal your soul. I'm not trying to get you to commit suicide, and I wasn't... trying... to make you hate yourself, or whatever.' She paused again. No response.

'And-- and anyway, you shouldn't let a d-bag like me run your sorry a** all the way to the restroom JUST because I was mean! Like, if you did that every time you met someone who's mean, you'd, like, spend your whole life in here!' Her voice had gotten a little impassioned. 'Like, who am I, right? It's not like I know you or anything, right? What's it matter what I say or think?' She waited for a response, but still nothing.

After another long pause, she got up and unlocked her stall, and walked out of it. 'You know...' She started again. 'It's totes okay to be weak and unsure and stuff. It just means you have plenty of room to grow.' She looked back, in the back of her head she was hoping that maybe she made him feel even a little better.

But she doubted it.

'Anyway, I work at the Smoothie Palace, sooo... if you wanna avoid running into me again, you'd probably wanna steer clear of there.' She walked out of the restroom, lingering outside for five minutes with the vain thought that maybe she could salvage the damage. But even then, would it be worth it? This was her, Alison Arondight, at her most charming. Stirring the emotional pot just came naturally to her.

If Mark hadn't emerged by then, the girl would accept that this was a lost cause and depart.

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By Bi Blitz

 

[By Bi Blitz]

Mark Hyun

With: A girl l Activity: Running away l Status: Healthy l Relationship Status: Single

Mark sat in the stall as sobs continued to wrack his body as he used his sleeves to wipe away the flow of tears. He couldn't even begin to describe how ******** pitiful he felt at the moment, one girl just said some mean words to him and he's bawling like a child. But Mark also knew that he couldn't help how he felt, it was just who he was, Mark Hyun was a soft crybaby. He'd blink a little bit at the buzzing of his phone and pulled it out to see a text from Damen. He stared at the message for a long moment as his finger typed out a couple letters before hitting backspace and shoving his phone back into his pocket. He couldn't trouble his only friend with something as petty as this, especially when he was working! Instead Mark would deal with this alone as he was used to doing. Mark let out a few more sobs before he froze when he heard the girls voice once again. This was the men's room! Was she so determined to mock him!? When she took the stall next to him Mark hugged himself as if it would put some kind of barrier between her words and his laughably delicate heart. However the apology did catch Mark off guard as he wiped more tears from his eyes, listening to her speak. The young man would listen when she explained that she was just trying to be friendly and Mark couldn't help but shake his head silently at the thought of it. Teasing him for his embarrassment and then proceeding to mock and laugh at him for his shaking hands. That was being friendly?! But Mark did have to admit that she seemed to be at least a bit sincere as she spoke if the tone she spoke in said anything. He'd remain silent the whole while as she then spoke about her friends and he couldn't help but silently agree with them a bit. But he also could admit he liked this person speaking a lot more, she seemed like a human being than one of those bullies who went out of their way to torment the aforementioned loner.

Of course as she continued on Mark's grip on himself and his jacket tightened considerably. Oh she had no idea, he had already hated himself long before their meeting so she wasn't at fault there at least. He would however blink a bit, taken aback by how passionate she became as she spoke as her words rung through his head. If only it were so easy to not care. He'd tried it once and all it ended up being was him going through a phase of denial which admittingly hurt more. But still he couldn't deny that she spoke the whole truth. He really shouldn't let things like this get to him but it was hard when all he really wanted in life was to be liked by others. And when those 'others' turned around and bullied him for their own amusement it only served to make him sensitive to other people's thoughts and comments about him. HEr final words in passing shook him to his core...he...had room to grow? Could Mark really truly become a better and more confident person like...like her?Finally Mark looked up as he heard her leave the men's room and he sat there for a minute or so just tossing everything she said around in his head. Could he possibly..?

About five and a half minutes went by of Mark just sitting there throwing the idea of becoming a better person while also hating himself for not being able to do something like that. In his mind it seemed like an impossible achievement for the mousey young man but maybe....maybe he could use some of what Damen helped him with and Mark threw open the bathroom door and rushed out of the men's room, just catching the girl as she walked through the door "W..wait!" he cried out running up to her outside the building. Mark's eyes were still red and puffy with tear streaks still on his face as he suddenly lost all drive when confronted with her. Mark's gaze would drift down to the floor as he had lost what he had originally wanted to say "......I..." for once he wished that he could just say what he wanted without overthinking everything. To not worry about anything. Fear once again reared it's ugly head as for once instead of running Mark would begin to get teary again as he forced himself to look up and meet her gaze "I..I...d..don't want to...to avoid you!" he finally got out. He was taking a gamble, he'd given so many other bullies a second chance only to get burned and hurt by them but apparently Mark was a glutton for punishment "I..I'm M..Mark! I'll....comeseeyousometime!" once he finally forced everything out Mark did what he did best and turned tail and ran down the sidewalk back to his home. He'd eventually go to the Smoothie Palace, once he managed to work up the courage again. Even if it was just another pointless burn waiting to happen. As he got farther and farther away Mark's inner self was crying why he went and made a fool of himself like that and began to beat himself up once more. He needed to lay down in bed.

(Exit)

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Fantom Leo XXII

Rhun Tolihzeh

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[ShadowStar369]

❝I αm somєbody єlsє’s story. Thє girl who sєrvєd thєir drink, thє pєrson thєy pushєd pαst on α crowdєd strєєt. I hαvє hαppєnєd in so mαny plαcєs, to so mαny pєoplє—thє єssєncє of mє livєs ion in thєsє nuαncєs, thєsє momєnts. Yєt nєvєr hαvє I bєєn boldєr or brightєr thαn I αm with you. Not oncє hαvє I єvєr fєlt so αlivє. Whαtєvєr vєssєl wє pour oursєlvєs into, minє is now ovєrflowing, brimming with lifє. It is trαnscєnding into somєthing nєw. Hαnds αrє no longєr hαnds. Thєy αrє cαrєssєs. Mouths αrє no longєr mouths. Thєy αrє kissєs.❞
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There's only one thing worse than bringing an ultra-competitive person to an arcade, and that would be to allow Maylin entrance to one. The pink haired bundle of mischief was infamous for her competitive streak. It was this character flaw that had resulted in her being forced to quit dancing a while back and also had her barred from numerous establishments, growing up, for her rambunctious antics. Today, however, she had promised Emmaline that if she were allowed the freedom to roam, she would be on her best behaviour. So one could only hope that she didn't get too carried away with her gaming. With an energetic bounce to her step and a deceptively sweet smile on her coral pink lips, she entered the Mushroom Kingdom, having decided her destination the moment she'd laid eyes on it. The petite woman blindly continued inwards as her eyes slowly adjusted to the different lighting within the building. As she surveyed the arcade's interior, her face lit up with childish glee, excitement bubbling up within her as she raced to figure out what game was to be played first. Immediately, she gravitated towards one of the zombie shooter games she so enjoyed, but remembering her promise to Em, she thought twice and settled on something safer- Shooting hoops. It was still shooting something.. sort of. She could always work herself up to the more competitive games. She had plenty of time to kill.
Maylin waited rather impatiently for the young teen taking their turn to finish before she speeded up to the game and all but threw her money into the coin slot. Her eagerness was evident as she bounced up and down on the balls of her feet, watching with a guileless fascination as the balls were slowly dropped and the lights flickered to life. With a soft squeal of utter joy, she lunged for the closest ball and started throwing with little regard for the force or aiming required to make the goal. Over and over she grabbed and threw the small basketballs, hitting her stride rather quickly and relishing every moment of the game until finally, the lights faded and the guard went up to catch the falling balls. With a little wiggle of her hips, Maylin gently pulled her tickets from the machine and went in search of another game with which to entertain herself. She would definitely return to the basketball game a few times throughout her stay in the arcade.








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XXXXXXXXX My nαmє is no longєr α nαmє, it is α cαll.





❣ LOCATION → [(enter) Mushroom Kingdom]
❣ COMPANY → [...]
❣ FEELING → [Gleeful]
❣ DATING → [...]
❣ ATTIRE → [...]
❣ OOC → [...]



❝And lovє is no longєr lovє—lovє is you.❞


XxXZephyr_SkyXxX

 

[XxXZephyr_SkyXxX]

ShadowStar369

0..3

C..Odename

S..Tryker

Watch the Shadows

╰☆╮The sounds of plastic guns being fired, old arcade style music and all around laughter drifted to Stryker's ears as she opened the door to the only arcade she had ever seen, or at least remembered seeing. A smile split her lips as she entered in and was almost giddy, her ears perked straight up as she looked around with excitement. What an amazing place! Where should she start. Catching her eye on a shooting game, she zeroed in on it and approached quickly. She chalked up the drive to play this game to her less than happy past. As she approached, she almost bumped into a pink haired girl who looked about as excited as she was to be there, but she seemed to think better of the game and moved away from it. Frowning gently, Stryker continued her approach, wondering why that girl had decided against the game. Looking over her shoulder, she saw that she had found a basketball toss game, seeming just as happy to be doing that. Shrugging, she picked up the gun and put her coin in. Holding the gun up like an expert, she readied for the game to start. A zombie shooter or something, she didn't pay that much attention, but with each shot and kill, the shadow fox in her thrummed with joy. It was designed to kill, and it's not like it knew the difference. When the game finished, or really, she lost all her lives, she put the gun up and noticed that the game could be a two player. She wondered if it was cooperative, or competing, either way, she wanted to find a partner to play against. Shifting her eyes around the room, she looked for the girl with pink hair. She wanted to play with her because she seemed as excited as her to be there. Finding her browsing the games after her basketball game had finished, Stryker approached her and tapped her shoulder, trying to flatten her ears back and speak showing the least amount of teeth to avoid any rapid negative reactions. "Excuse me, but would you like to play a shooter game with me? I think it'd be more fun with someone else." She gave the other woman a closed lip smile and a slight tilt of her head. She hopped this wasn't totally weird.╰☆╮

[☂: Mood][ Intrigued ] [☀: Location][ Mushroom Kingdom ][☁: I'm With][ Herself ][☄: Thoughts][ ... ][O.O.C.][ ]