house of panties

[plushaeusrumpified]

Who| Bro Strider and YOU
What| Bro camps out in the lingerie store and does weird things
Where| The lingerie store
When| Throughout week 2
Warnings/Notes| TBA

Ever since the start of the arena, it didn't take long for Bro to find his home. If no one expected him to go straight for the lingerie store, then they were wrong because when he finds it, he can't think of a better base of operations. Of course he leaves every now and then to get food, but otherwise he's content to stay right the fuck here.

By the end of the first week, he's truly turned it into a place to live. The mannequins have been put to good use. He's given them makeshift slingshots that he's made, using pairs of panties as the pocket. The mannequins are in attack mode, positioned around the entrance of the store to look threatening. Of course they're wearing the sexiest of lingerie and he's drawn faces on them to add to the sexy intimidation factor.

It's hard to get much more strange than that, but inside he's pulled much of the lingerie off of the shelves and made a pile of panties and bras on the floor, which he uses as a bed at night. He's woven together all sorts of panties and thongs together into a blanket which he uses to cover up at night when things get cold and he has a couple of the other mannequins in sexy poses near his bed pile, just for added effect.

In a corner nearby is his little pile of swag, which is various shit he's scavenged from around the mall. Things he can use as weapons, things he can use to alleviate boredom, that sort of thing. It's obvious he's made this place his home and that he intends on staying there through the long haul. He's made a slingshot of his own just like the mannequins carry, in case anyone unsavory happens to wander in and he has to fight them off. Mostly he just wants to hit people with a panty slingshot.

You can catch him here pretty much any day of the week. You might find him lying in the underwear pile, or re-drawing the face on one of the mannequins. If you're unlucky, he might be bored enough to use the slingshot on you as you enter the store. Can you really resist checking this place out though, considering the things guarding the door?

[Closed to Eridan and backdated to week 1]

Eridan, unfortunately, is going to be one of the people Bro decides to shoot with a slingshot. It's getting fairly late and he's had a long day of setting the place up and weaving panty blankets. He's not in the mood to get interrupted, so he's going to fire off a shot at him, using marbles as ammo.

"Unless you're here to shove dollars in places, I'd suggest you get the hell out," he calls after the attempt at beaming Eridan in the head with the marble. "Considering you think the idea is stupid, I'd say you're gonna have to leave."

Comments

[riddledwith]

Edward has been a busy body around all parts of the store, setting up traps in a multitude of locations except for very obviously claimed territories. Like this one, whose king seemed to be entertaining himself quite well.

Carefully, he slides in between the mannequins and looks around, a big sweeping look, before looking down at Bro.

"Are you the owner of this establishment? I'm looking for a gift for my girlfriend but lingerie? All greek to me! What would you recommend?" Lies, all lies, and his joking delivery says so. It's very clear he's attempting an ice breaker.

[plushaeusrumpified]

Bro very nearly beams Edward in the head with a marble as he enters the store, but there's something that stops him from doing so. Maybe it's the fact he looks vaguely familiar, or the fact that this is a man who clearly knows how to lovingly sculpt his facial hair. So Bro resists the urge, and he'll just stare at him as he approaches, leaning back in his pantie pile with his hands clasped behind his head.

As it turns out, he's pretty damn glad he didn't because this guy knows how to make a damn good first impression. Immediately Bro is standing up, squaring his shoulders and standing at full height as he puts on a professional air. "Well now, I'm glad you asked." He might even be putting on a vaguely British accent just to really go the posh mile. "But I'm afraid I can't answer that, sir, until you tell me a little about this gal of yours. Is she curvy? Thin? Do she got buns, hun?"

[onthelii2p]

Though Sollux and Feferi have pledged to stick together, the two had reached a level of comfort that, now and then, they would take their separate ways for one reason or another. Meeting people, supplies gathering, things along that line. How this has turned into Sollux gaping at a lingerie store is squarely the fault of whoever set up the mannequins this way.

"What the fuck?"

He was going to maybe swap clothes again - for all regular bathing isn't really possible here, he can at least keep his garments fresh - but definitely not at this store. Now he finds himself staring with crinkled brow at the abominations "guarding" the entrance. Are those panties they're holding? No, of course they are, but why are they holding them like that? Who took the time to draw those faces on them? Why? They're freaky if just for how weirdly drawn they are, but the strangeness overrides any instinct to make him leave.

Tentative, ready to flee if he has to, Sollux reaches out and pokes one of their fake arms.

[plushaeusrumpified]

And just as he planned, Bro's little mannequin set-up lures someone in. He knows good and well that no one can resist taking a look in here with them standing guard. He lives for screwing with people, so if he can get a reaction out of someone then he's doing his job well, and Sollux falls for it hook, line and sinker. He'll watch him for a few moments, out of sight away from the mannequins, just to see what Sollux will do.

It's when the troll reaches out to touch it that Bro does anything. "INTRUDER ALERT. WEE-WOO, WEE-WOO." You've triggered his alarm, Sollux.

Which consists of him making the high-pitched siren noises himself. Then, he'll pull back his pantie slingshot and send a marble at Sollux's head, because he has to defend his domain from trolls who want to get handsy with his mannequin babes.

[onthelii2p]

Sollux jumps about a foot in the air at the sudden 'alarm', fake-ass douchebag version though it is. Suffice it to say he did not expect that, and he goes to back off even as his head turns back and forth in search of the one who said that. The marble pliks against the side of his head about as soon as he spots him; his hand shoots up to clutch the spot. No blood. No deep pain. He doesn't even see what hit him, and he doesn't waste time scanning the floor.

"What the fuck?" His posture scrunches in defensive as he moves away - backs away, specifically, because he's not going to expose that to this asshole. One who, now that he looks properly, is actually pretty familiar.

He ends up crouched on the floor, palms up open in front of his head when he asks, "Are... are you Dave'th luthuth?"

[plushaeusrumpified]

There's just no describing how absolutely satisfying it is to hear the plik of the marble against that hard troll head. Out of any possible reaction, this is probably one of the better ones he could have gotten. It's just so beautiful, it almost brings a tear to his eyes. But only one, because he's ironic like that and both eyes can't possibly cry simultaneously. One must drip completely off of his chin in the most anime-like way possible before the other eye can begin leaking. Because he is the anime, it is him.

"The fuck is me, I'm the fuck." You would think someone who just shot someone with a slingshot would try to appear menacing afterwards, but there Bro is with his pantie slingshot standing with his arms folded in the most casual way possible. "You touched my babies, you shouldn't do that."

Then he raises an eyebrow. "His what-uth?"

[onthelii2p]

What is this guy's deal? He seemed weird to begin with, but a lot of it Sollux just chalked up to cultural differences in how children are raised. This, though, is another issue. This is a man with a pair of panties in his hand, which in combination with the mannequins click into realization in Sollux's mind. He shot him with those. Ew.

But the man speaks, and he drags his attention back to his face. "What the heck ith a baby?"

He considers getting up. He does have weapons with him - a gun tucked into his waistband, a bucket with skates and the spare box of bullets he got with it - but then, aggression isn't the attitude he wants to put off. His hands lower a smidge, but only just.

"The guy who raithed him. Do you not have that word?"

[plushaeusrumpified]

Sometimes, it becomes painfully clear out different trolls and humans are. This is one of those times, just as it had been when talking to Eridan about troll currency and whatnot. But now here they are with obviously different words for things. He also has to question Sollux's priorities.

If he'd gotten beamed in the head with a marble, he's pretty sure he would be bitch slapping somebody instead of asking for cultural clarification. It's actually kind of endearing.

"Nope," he states in a very matter of fact tone. He lets out an exasperated sigh. "Why don't you pull up a pile of panties and have a seat, kid, we'll get this cultural exchange underway. I'll show you mine if you show me yours, if you will."

Come to think of it-

Nah. Nah, Sollux is too young.

[shenunigans]

So far, this is panning out differently than their mini arena together. Dave had been by Bro's side by the get-go until... well. Honestly you'd think he'd know better than to separate with him. Shit happens when you don't travel in bigger numbers, but people are exhausting. After a few weeks of nothing but Bro and Rose in prison, Dave needed the space badly.

Now? Well he's not sure if he regrets putting the distance between them, but it's hard not to consider how things might have gone down if Bro were around for shit like.. No. Nope. It's bad enough Loki bailed him out, he doesn't need to hear more stories about his brave friends sweeping in and saving him from the most menial of shit. Clara, Bro, Loki, Terezi. It just keeps happening. He doesn't feel like a knight worth his salt, he feels like a fucking incompetent idiot.

All of that independence he gained on his little trip to space has pretty much gone to shit now, so he might as well pop in and see Bro in the place he knows damn well he'll be. He ignores the mannequins and just walks right in, not announcing himself, just scanning around the place quite obviously in search of Bro.

[plushaeusrumpified]

It definitely is stacking up to be vastly different than the mini arena, and Bro is conflicted on how he feels about that. On one hand, he's fine with letting Dave do his own thing. On the other, he knows damn well that if shit gets real then there's nothing he can do if he's on the other side of the mall with no knowledge of it happening. Still, this is more Dave's element than the boat, so he doesn't feel too on edge about it. Besides, he has Loki so obviously Dave has people to watch his back. Bro also isn't too interested in seeing his little bro mack on anybody, as much as he trolls him about it. So space is good.

What isn't good is that very thing happening and Bro not knowing about it. It's a prime example of why there's a part of him that wants to stick together that he's ignoring. If he knew what happened, then he would level the arena looking for Eridan. If he had been there, it's likely he would have died trying to put a stop to the situation. There are definitely pros and cons to him not being privy to certain happenings.

But that's not so relevant, because he's blissfully unaware of what happened, so when he sees Dave coming into the store, he's perfectly casual. He's kind of just buried himself in the panties at this point, so he's just a head peeking out of the top of the pile.

"Yo." Nothing out of the ordinary here, his voice is all casual and shit. He's just a guy buried in panties.

[shenunigans]

Dave would be flattered to know Bro isn't too worried about him, but he's always been an arm's length protection kind of guy. Even after three years without him, he's fallen back into expecting him to leap out at the opportune moments to slice things in half and bail his ass out. Not that he needs to be here to do that, apparently. Dave is starting to notice how many people are willing, but it makes him feel a little like he's falling back into that shadow John warned him about.

He isn't sure if he should tell Bro, even if it's present in his mind. He feels like he should know that there's a troll with a gun and weird fetishes, but like most things that happen to Dave it's pretty fucking embarrassing. Like what he's seeing right now, really. He lifts a brow at Bro and his pile and his lips twitch as he resists the urge to be a dick about it.

"Hey. Haven't seen you around since I saw that pervert wanted poster plastered around out there." He pulls himself up to sit on a display table. "Status report, go."

[plushaeusrumpified]

Bro is pretty glad when Dave resists the urge to be a dick. He's in his element right now, you can't just insult a man's element like that. He's rarely in his element here, after all, because it's not as if he can indulge in half the weird shit back in the Capitol that he can back home. It's only times like this that he can even begin to feel normal again.

He lifts a brow in turn. "Status report: soft and silky." Because you know, he's covered in panties. "And more than a little frilly."

A second or two later, he'll turn a little more serious. "Nothing to report though, in all honesty. Been a pretty fucking unproductive arena, all things considered. A little boring, too. I mean, not that I want a fuckload of trauma, but everyone's acting like besties and it's kind of stupid."

[shenunigans]

It's too much of an easy shot to make, really. A true comedian would delve deeper and find something much funnier about the situation, but Dave doesn't care.

"Sounds about right." He retorts dryly. "The hell kind of Arena are you looking at? This month has been hell already for my sorry ass. I'm surprised I even made it this far with all my close encounters." He scoffs. "But hey, throw a bunch of people together to live with each other for months to years, break them apart and throw them back to fight and then wonder why they're a little clingy. Sure."

[plushaeusrumpified]

Bro has to bite his tongue in order to stop himself from snipping at Dave. It's not that he doesn't get it. He does get it. He knows exactly why everyone is acting buddy-buddy and all that shit. But Dave just doesn't look at things the way he does- maybe it's that Bro is just better at compartmentalizing. Doing what needs to be done and looking at things in a more practical, unfeeling light. He just knows that the easiest way to get out of this shit and back to the Capitol for a while is to get the killing over with.

But whatever, he's not going to say anything. It's not an argument he wants to have, so he'll just fucking ignore it. "Really? You got a boyfriend and you're gonna say shit like that?" Bro has to rolls his eyes, and Dave can see because he ain't wearing his shades. Something about them being too sharp, so he couldn't have them. They're fuckin' sharp alright. But for real, he's unaware of just what Dave's been gone through- all he knows is he got into some sort of fight with somebody, that's it. "Something happen that I don't know about?"

[rediscover]

As the second week has gone on, Anna's gotten a bit braver in her adventuring. And after her Talk with Kristoff about his tendency to be overprotective, she's found that it's easier to go off on her own without feeling like he'll need to take a bullet for her at every turn. The mall is in a steady state of chaos by now; everything's been moved, Harley's plowed through much of it in her SUV, and there's litter everywhere, signs of skirmishes, people at each other's throats. She steers clear of all this, and sidles into one of the stores she's been most interested in exploring.

Of course, it's not quite untouched, and Anna eyes the sexually menacing mannequins warily as she steps into the lingerie shop. And then she's looking wide-eyed at all the scandalous articles of clothing scattered all over the place--pulled down off of shelves, in piles, the scantiest undergarments she's ever seen. And in the middle of all this--

"...Oh. Hi?"

Of course it's Bro. Of course.

[plushaeusrumpified]

Bro can't lie, when he sees Anna looking like she intends on coming into the shop, he's pretty glad. It feels like it's been a real hot minute since the two of them saw each other, and somehow as annoying as she is, she's also endearing. She's that annoying sort of frustrating that you can't help but like. The kind you subject yourself to but then end up feeling exhausted when you get home. The kind of friend who texts you early in the morning and you yell at but somehow keep talking to them.

As it turns out, he's working on making his pantie quilt bigger when she enters the the store. And of course he's not going to show that he's happy to see her, either. In fact, he's going to hold up a hand to stop her from saying anymore.

"Hush." For a long moment, he lets that hang in the hair, before he speaks again. "Luscious or Flirty?" He'll give no context for his question.

[rediscover]

Anna halts, not expecting him to cut her off so soon into their rendezvous. She blinks several times, taken aback, and his question is even more baffling.

"Uh...Luscious?" It's the lesser of two evils. She thinks. Maybe. This is a weird question, and this whole situation is weird, and he's making something out of panties and that has Anna very concerned indeed. "What is this in regards to, exactly?"

[plushaeusrumpified]

"Perfect."

He works quickly, and soon enough it becomes apparent what he asked for, because he'll hold up the pantie quilt he's been working on. When he adds a new section to it, he always adds a pair of panties with writing on them in the middle. So far, it's big enough that there are three pairs of panties with words on them, with Luscious on the right square, kinky in the middle square and bootylicious on the left square.

"Ain't it beautiful?" he asks, giving her a grin as he lowers the quilt. "So, what up?"

[rediscover]

Anna blinks when Bro holds up his creation, unsure whether she should laugh or just turn around and walk back out. She settles on a dazed "...Wow." That's really the only appropriate response here, honestly. And then her mind blanks, because she can't really remember whether or not there was a reason for her coming in here. So she perches tentatively on the edge of one of the empty displays.

"Oh, nothing. Just thought I'd come in here and see what it's all about, y'know. Totally normal exploration."

[plushaeusrumpified]

Her reaction is good enough for him. Unlike some people, he doesn't need constant validation and shit to know that everything he does is awesome. This blanket is going to keep him warm at night, so therefore it's the best damn thing in the entire arena.

At her statement, Bro just has to snort. "Normal exploration would be going to the build a bear or some shit," he points out. "But here you are in the lingerie store. Were you hoping to get a little somethin' somethin' for someone special?" He waggles his eyebrows. "You need help shopping? I'm something of an expert on panties, but mostly taking them off."

It's around then that he remembers the awkward conversation they had back in the Capitol whilst Anna enjoyed her chocolate fountain.

Awkward.

[unconchonable]

Eridan is looking rather rough when Bro spots him, and as such it's pretty obvious he's gotten into one hell of a fight. So, it makes sense when he gets pelted with with a marble, he's left snarling (with a few of his shark teeth missing), nearly hissing in reply. He's full on glaring when he sees Bro.

He's honestly come here to seek some sort of shelter away from the other people in the arena, and here he's come across one of the worst to deal with. Though, he can't leave now, it'd be a death-dealing blow to his already wounded ego.

"Oh piss off, I can be wherewer the fuck I want. Take your childish antics somewhere else, I'm really not in the mood for it."

[plushaeusrumpified]

"Yeah, but do you really want to be in a human lingerie shop, or is it just you being a little bitch?" Bro is inclined to think that Eridan is just trying to be a little bitch. That's the entire vibe he'd gotten their first meeting, so really.

He'll pull back the slingshot, marble aimed directly at Eridan's head, again. "It's nearly closing time, asshole. It doubles as a friendly warning to get the fuck out."

[unconchonable]

"I don't ewen know what that means--" He pauses as his eyes finally look around at all the scantily clad female mannequins, his fins drooping as his eyes grow wide, his cheeks flushing a bright violet. OH. THAT'S. WHAT. THAT MEANS.

OH.

He's too preoccupied staring at the mannequins in a mix between curiosity and disgust to hear what Bro even says, not to mention dodge that marble that's being aimed at him. Take your shot Bro, this kid is clearly occupied.

[plushaeusrumpified]

And he takes the shot a Eridan gets flustered over realizing that he's surrounded by panties of all shapes, sizes and various states of used. It beams him right on the head and at that exact moment, the lights shut off and the gate to the store drops down, trapping them inside.

"Way to go, asshole," he grunts out, really not impressed at the fact he has to share his home with the most obnoxious troll that was ever born. "I mean, seriously. Way to go. You're such a fucking winner, you deserve a fucking award. Here it is."

He shoots off another marble just for you. It's colored gold. You're welcome.

[unconchonable]

Eridan lets out a surprised sort of sound as the marble hits him, sending Bro a snarling glare. Not that Bro can see it that well when the lights shut off, and the store traps them inside. When Bro speaks up again, Eridan groans his annoyance, rolling his eyes.

The surprise of being trapped did well to calm him from the last marble, but the next only serves to further piss him off, "Oh shut it! An' knock that off, will ya? It's fuckin' childish."

As if Bro cares.

Eridan storms over to one side of the store, keeping an eye on Bro, seeing as he has no issue seeing in low-light, he's of a nocturnal species after all. "You stay ower there, an' I'll stay ower here, got it? Ain't no reason to make this arrangement worse than it gotta be." He offers his terms, as if it were a means of truce. He's really sore and just wants to rest after everything that's happened, and if Bro can just cooperate, that'd be stellar.