Elder Tales... This was a game right? That was what thousands of people had asked themselves on that day, the day they had come to know as the Apocalypse. An MMO like any other, with a pedigree that drew thousands upon thousands of players to it daily. It was your typical computer game, you sat in front of a screen, used your mouse and keyboard and controlled some avatar. The character was a portrayal of you, but it never really was you. Just pixels, a collection of numbers that the game generated. You never really got an idea of what your avatar might be thinking, or feeling, because you weren't attached to it in any real sense. But what would happen if you were? If by some hypothetical situation you could feel every single thing your avatar did? From the pain of combat to the environment, the fatigue of wandering around or training all day and the very weight of your gear upon your shoulders, what if you could experience that all first hand? Surely it wouldn't be that trying, even if it did ever come to pass. It was virtual, the items couldn't have any real weight. Numbers made up everything in the game so there was no way there could be pain, no matter what happened to you. It was just a game, right?

The Apocalypse proved everyone wrong in that regard, and it did so harshly. The first day most people were just confused and panicked. No one was considering going out and fighting as everyone was too busy trying to figure out what had happened. Pretty quickly people began to band together in an attempt to find support, both friends and strangers alike. Strength in numbers, right? The mystery of what happened, of how everyone had become trapped in Elder Tales, the fear and potential ramifications of what this meant was enough to bring people together. As the initial shock of what had occurred gradually waned people gained enough courage to venture out of the cities, experience the world for themselves as it were. Not only did players now have to experience what it was like to be their characters but they also had to endure playing the game firsthand. Gone were the usual interfaces, you didn't have a mouse to click and keys to hit any longer, you were the controller. There were menus and all, and you could still access them, but much of what needed to be done was essentially through bodily motions. This made combat excessively difficult at first, and the fact pain was all too real didn't help much either. As days passed by people began to get a grasp on the new way of things though, and soon enough players were forming parties and going outside of the cities regularly, taking on the game as they had done so many times before.

The player base had shrunk drastically with the Apocalypse, and it was estimated only a few tens of thousands of players were in the game now. Players not inside the game at the time of the event could not get in it seemed, and those inside could not get out. Those who were in the game were the only ones that would be until something changed, and this was a fact the Guilds realized fairly quickly. Using their influence and size it was the Guilds that quickly took power, and through their power and influence they began to effect Elder Tales in ways never before. Towns were taken under the control of some Guilds, shaped into their design and sometimes even abused for their own purposes. In the case of Akihabara it would be a collective of Guilds that would take root, forming an organization known as the Round Table. All of the elite Guilds had decided to form an alliance and guide Akihabara as a collective, and thus far it had been fairly successful. In comparison with towns like Susukino which had been taken over by PKers, Akihabara was a peaceful haven for players. Slowly but surely thanks to an innovative take on food the city began to flourish and it became well known for its wealth and the freedom it afforded to its residents. Naturally players came here in spite of the Teleportation Gates not working, and pretty soon the city had become very lively.

In the face of all of this hustle and bustle there were still players who hadn't taken to the situation quite as well as others. Some people weren't as keen to form parties or join Guilds, they might prefer to be solitary. Or rather it was just easier that way, less stressful. Parties regularly departed on hunting expeditions and simple trips outside of town, but a few remained essentially isolated within Akihabara. A young samurai found himself sat at the Silver-Leaf Tree for yet another day, tucked away in the shadow of the large plant. He was a solo player, one of the few remaining in Elder Tales now. The dangers of playing a game which was now anything but kept him from venturing outside of the city, and his lack of any sort of friends or Guild kept him from participating in much. A bit ironic, a tank afraid to go into combat. It might be different if he had a team with him, even just one person. A few players had come along and invited him to join them, but every time he would either freeze up, immediately decline out of nervousness or remain silent until they left. He didn't do socializing well, not unless it was behind a keyboard and screen. Face to face interactions didn't serve him well at all, even if he was technically not himself. His avatar was an idealistic portrayal of what he wanted to be, and that ought to instill some bit of confidence in him, but it didn't. So the samurai kept to himself then, watching others go about their business. Maybe he'd join someone at some point, maybe not. It was easier sitting here, less stress.

Another party had come up to him not long after it had struck noon, a small team. They needed a tank, and naturally seeing one sitting by himself they had ventured a try at him. Much as Kosuke may even have wanted to accept their offer he simply couldn't, not without stumbling over himself like an idiot. After trying to explain he wasn't very good in a group he apologized profusely, enough so to the point the group called him a 'freak' before leaving him be, laughing at his expense until they were out of earshot. Sighing somberly to himself the boy pulled his legs up and wrapped his arms around them, resting his chin over his arms. Maybe he was being unrealistic thinking he would join a group, he couldn't picture himself getting into one. The best thing for him to do might well be just hang up his sword and wait for someone to fix this, then he could go back to feeling comfortable behind his computer like before.

Brisk, fresh air and a gentle breeze. Largoes’ eyes open to a wide blue canvas, dotted with carefree clouds, and a gleaming sun in the center of the sky. The vine-covered buildings of Akihabara littered the sides of his view as the boy lay on the ground. The sun warmed his fur, and his tail was tentatively curled around him. New sensations that he hadn’t quite gotten used to, but that he very much welcomed. With some effort, he sat himself up with a pained face and a quiet ‘tsk’. The ground was proving to be a poor place to rest, and every morning, he woke up more and more sore. But, in a way, that made this all even better. Every morning was like waking up to a dream, but everything was so real… A bit of pain here and there only reassured him that this wasn’t just some elaborate dream. There’s no longer a medium between him and his avatar—He is his avatar, now.

Largoes stood himself up, stretching and swaying his tail. He’d adjusted to the Apocalypse much faster than most, honestly. While most were panicked and scared, all trying to find a way to log out, or wake up from this strange dream, Largoes was already comfortable in his avatar’s skin. –Fur? …Fur. Since he’d started playing, there was no farce between him and his avatar. He acted like he would have in his avatar’s place, and because of that, he found he was most comfortable on roleplaying servers. In a way, the Apocalypse had simply created one big, sophisticated roleplay server.

“..T-though, it’s a lot less ‘roleplaying’, and a lot more ‘reality’…” The otter mused, rubbing his head. Still, it was a welcome change for him.

Largoes stretched out again, working on getting used to his new body, still. Sure, he was still humanoid, but having a full coat of fur and a tail isn’t something one can accurately simulate in their imagination, no matter how hard they try. He looks more like a battle-ready priest than a Guardian, what with his cloth armor. That, coupled with his strange appearance and markings, tended to give him weird looks.
He crosses his arms, starting a slow walk around the city of Akihabara. His friend Aiko was nowhere to be found… Last night felt a bit hazy, really. There was some kind of celebration over finally having food that tastes like food again, and he thinks his drink may have been spiked… As he tries to recall all of this, he tugs his scarf up, embarrassed. He must have been a total lightweight to have conked out after one spiked drink.

He approached the Silver-Leaf Tree, the heart of Akihabara. For now, it was a sort of ‘player pick-up’ area for parties needing extra members. There didn’t tend to be too many people around, despite that, and it was a wide open area. If Aiko were looking for him, she’d likely give the area a look-over.

“Man, I was really hoping to explore another dungeon, today… I-If I embarrassed myself as bad as I think I did l-last night, though… M-maybe she doesn’t even want to see me, for a little while.” Largoes thinks out loud, bringing his hands behind his head as he pads his way towards the tree. He glances over to a discussion going on at the base of the tree—Was that a party? It looks like one person was begging, or pleading to join a party. Or… Apologizing? Laughter followed, with the embarrassed figure hanging his head somewhat. Largoes comes a bit closer as the group departs, leaving the one straggler behind. He could never stand people like that, but he'll just have to let them go. Wouldn't do to wake the Royal Guard, after all.
The otter blinks, slightly taken aback as the other person’s information is drawn up into his vision like a game menu. He lets out a startled squeak, fortunately muffled by his scarf. T-that seemed to be part of this new reality, but he hadn't gotten used to it, yet.

“K.. Kosuke?” He says out loud as he reads the display. The Samurai was hunched over by the time he’d finished reading, looking more insecure than anything else. The name felt familiar, somehow, but being a wayward traveler, it’s hard to really put a name to a face. As Largoes tentatively approaches the Samurai, he pauses. Maybe he shouldn’t get involved. He’s definitely close enough that it’s clear he was coming by to greet him, but…

The Guardian looks aside for a moment, rubbing his shoulder. “--Bah, I a-already came over, so…” He mutters, turning back to Kosuke with a quiet huff. He’s a lot friendlier than he used to be, sure, but he’s still learning how to… Work with people.

“You look like you’re having a rough day, there. Need a hand up?”

The morning dew had begun to fade, but Aiko spent every minute since she woke up admiring it. Sure, she could have easily afforded an inn overnight... But she had fallen in love with the view of the moon through the leaves. The lunar glow was filtered through the foliage, most noticeable through a 'natural window' in the branches. That morning, when the sun blasted directly against Aiko's eyelids, she was kicked awake. The girl nearly fell out of the tree from the surprise, but she had managed to spend just another couple of hours enjoying the day. The night before had been a rather loud one, but she had yet to taste any of the game's alcohol since the Apocalypse. She had to keep herself disciplined especially now. She took a deep breath of air before hearing some kind of awkward, stop-and-go conversation below her. Her tail uncurled from around her waist and hung limply from the limb she was resting on as her ears perked up, her gaze moving to the ground. "What the hell is going on down there...?" A samurai named Kosuke was having a rather awkward conversation with a group of somebodies. They walked away laughing at him and she couldn't help but feel a heavy sense of sympathy... She was fairly good with people herself, but she knew people who had a really difficult time of keeping themselves composed in front of others.

The night before, Largoes had even partaken of the alcohol at the multiple parties they attended. He made a fool of himself... For once, he didn't seem to be constantly worrying over what he looked like to anybody else, what they thought, how they reacted, or anything else... He was just... Largoes. It would likely be different today; luckily for him, he'd not really said anything too embarrassing or revealing, so it wouldn't be quite so uncomfortable this morning. Then she heard him... What timing - but he knew she'd be at one of Akihabara's most beautiful locations come the morning. Always so kind, it was touching, to be perfectly honest. Even for somebody who didn't have the best social skills, he gave it his best shot to help somebody who was being basically tortured. Logically, a Samurai at level 68 would who had spent plenty of time in the area would be of great use, as well. Largoes boasted great magical defense thanks to his Sol Set, but it meant that they needed to find some way to make up for the physical resistance. A samurai would be of excellent help, that was for sure. Aiko grinned as a thought came to her.

She dropped from the tree, just behind her Race of Ritual friend before tapping his shoulder, clearing her throat. "Largoes-san..." She started slowly, cooing his name as she clasped her hands together behind her, turning side to side as her tail flicked about. "I-I was so confused last night... W-when you asked me to go on a... on a date with you," The girl's voice gave out a little bit toward the end of her statement. "B-But after thinking it over, I'm glad I said yes... I'm so excited to go out tonight," She brightened up, biting her lip and gazing up to him cheerfully. "I've never seen you so confident, I guess... It's just a new side of you, huh?" The girl kicked the dirt at her feet and couldn't hold it for more than three seconds. She snorted, bringing a hand up to cover her mouth before she began to giggle. She couldn't handle it, she loved messing with her best friend.

The girl leaned to the side to see the Samurai behind Largoes and tilted her head, seeming to calculate a few different possibilities before she revealed her entire self. A white sundress with a ruffle vertically down the middle covered her torso, matching stockings rising from her feet up to her mid-thigh. Over her forehead, she wore a chain-circlet of gold, a sapphire teardrop gem dangling at the middle. Black and white two-tone sleeve-gloves were pulled up her forearms and her kukri, as usual, were sheathed on her lower back. She smiled brightly to Kosuke as she bowed, "Good morning, my name's Aiko. Aiko the Shadow Dancer, I hope my friend here hasn't caused you too much trouble today," She apologized with mock-sincerity, beaming teasingly to Largoes as she rose to a full stand again.

Kosuke just wanted to be left alone, was that so much to ask for? He tried keeping off to the side to avoid people and they still came up and bothered him anyways. They could never be nice ones either, it was always those who wanted to tease or taunt him for whatever reason. It was lame and he knew it, a tank that didn't want to group up and fight. That was his job, it's the very thing he was meant to do and yet he couldn't do it. He was like a dull sword, useless. Sighing somberly he laid his head on his arms and closed his eyes, hoping maybe for a moment he could imagine himself back in his room instead of Akihabara. The sound of a stranger's voice however startled the samurai, making him jump slightly as he lifted his head and came face to face... With an otter? That was a new one, he'd never seen one of them before. There were Werecats and Wolf Fangs, to name some of the Beastman groups, but otters? Realizing he was staring at the other player Kosuke quickly averted his gaze, feeling a cool sweat forming on his face as he was spoken to. Jeez, was this one here to make fun of him too? Maybe he could just get up and walk away, find somewhere else to relax. The Silver-Leaf Tree was fairly public after all, his fault for picking the spot.

Catching a break was never going to happen, not if he was going to stay here. Maybe if he had asked the otter, Largoes to leave then he would have. The abrupt appearance of yet another player however threw a wrench in his far from foolproof plan, yet again startling the samurai. Gasping softly at the girl falling from the tree he pressed up against the trunk, not all too relieved even when the girl didn't pay him mind at first. Why were people dropping in like that? Had she been there the whole time? Eh, had she been watching him?! He didn't do well with people, and certainly not with girls. He just was never that good with anyone in the real world, even if he wasn't exactly bad looking. Please don't let her talk to me... Just make them go away... The odd pair looked to be caught up in their own conversation meaning he got a brief reprieve. Inhaling through his nose silently to try and relax he closed his eyes, rubbing at his head with a frown. Again someone found it necessary to try and strike up conversation with him, this time it was Aiko. Opening his eyes and looking up at the assassin uncertainly he frowned, totally tongue tied. What was he supposed to say to her? Hello? That sounded kind of lame, and first impressions were everything. Oh but he was no good at first impressions!

"I-I'm Kosuke... Nice to m-meet you..." the samurai replied, bowing his head awkwardly before looking away, "He... Wasn't any trouble..." If he did say Largoes was trouble then Aiko would likely get mad, and then there would be yelling. He wanted to avoid that if at all possible, that was the worst kind of thing he could receive. Folding his hands in his lap Kosuke began to twist his fingers together, shifting uncomfortably when he realized he was still being looked at. Slowly his eyes crept to the corners and he glanced back at Aiko, wondering if she was waiting for him to say any more. At least these two weren't laughing at him, yet. If anything these two didn't appear to be mean in anyway, a bit odd, but not mean. Smiling shakily he shifted his weight around, getting into a kneeling position as he looked at the ground, pulling at one of his sleeves habitually.

"If... If um... You're going to ask me for something... To join you or whatever... The answer is no..." Realizing that may have come across as horribly rude Kosuke's face reddened in embarrassment, bowing forward with his eyes squeezed shut. "I-I mean I can't! I can't fight in groups and I don't get on well with other people and I c-can't help you with what you need so p-please don't ask!" he said quickly and all in one breath, inhaling raggedly as his nerves were getting a bit high. Couldn't they just leave him alone? Nothing against them, they were probably fine people, but he wasn't a people person. At all. He couldn't even offer them any advice as where to look for people if that's what they were after, making him feel bad for being unhelpful to boot. Neh... This was why he avoided people, these situations always turned out badly for him. Worst case scenario he was just going to up and run off, but he'd rather they left first, wanting to keep the spot he'd been at all morning.

Largoes rubs the back of his head, raising a brow as the Samurai gives him a curious look, and then just sort of… Looks away. G-gosh, is talking with people really that difficult? …Did he offend him, or something? He ponders for a moment, thinking to himself. It doesn’t seem like he wants to deal with anyone right now, so perhaps it’d do to leave him alone.
‘For once, my intuition was right.’ He thinks to himself. The Guardian opens his mouth to say something, but is interrupted by a light tap on his shoulder. He turns around, smiling a bit as he sees Aiko behind him. He’ll never get used to how silent she is when she’s sneaking around, but he’s glad he found her here. Before he can say another word, though, his eyes widen and his face goes pale.

"Largoes-san... I-I was so confused last night... W-when you asked me to go on a... on a date with you,"

“H-hey, what’s.. What’s with the honorifics, now? And—Wait.. I.. I s-said…” He stutters, staring blankly at her. One drink was all it took, eh? “I-I’m sorry if I… I didn’t mean to s-- I don’t even r-remember—“

"B-But after thinking it over, I'm glad I said yes... I'm so excited to go out tonight. I've never seen you so confident, I guess... It's just a new side of you, huh?"

Largoes gulps, falling silent. I messed up, I messed up, I messed up, I messed up--
Before his thoughts could even catch up with him, it was only seconds before the Fox Tail had dropped the act, giggling behind her hand. The Guardian gives a defeated sigh as color returns to his face, albeit redder than earlier. He clears his throat as he coughs into his hand, finding his voice again and regaining his composure. “..Y-you’re a jerk, you know that?” He says jokingly, giving his friend a good-natured push. Er… At least, he thinks that meant she was joking. He tugs at his scarf like it’s the collar of a shirt that was suddenly slightly too tight on him. He’d be no good on a date, let alone with his best—and essentially only friend. The incessant teasing and joking came with the companionship, and quite frankly, he welcomed it.

As Aiko had greeted the Samurai with slightly greater success than him, Largoes steps aside, turning to face the Samurai again. He opens his mouth to try and protest being a bother, frowning and flicking his tail, but ever-slow to the draw, he catches Aiko’s knowing glance again. “Ah, right. S-she’s just joking, still..” He mumbles under his breath, half-relieved. After being so detached from people, Aiko has done a good job of innately teaching him social cues. Mostly by thoroughly embarrassing him, whether he picks up on it or not… But it was all in good nature.

The otter perks his ears as Kosuke speaks up, crossing his arms and ‘ah’ing. Confidence issues, then. So he was apologizing, earlier. He casts a glance over to Aiko, swaying his tail a bit. He knows about not being able to fight in a group, or not getting along with people. It feels easier to just let people pass by, while you do your own thing. He hadn’t thought to invite the Samurai to join them for a while, but maybe it’d do them all some good, after all.

“…H-have you tried before, Kosuke?” He asks out of the blue, a smirk peeking out from behind his scarf.

The girl watched as both men nervously exchanged phrases. It was painful, sometimes, watching Largoes try to be social. It wouldn't be a bad thing that he found somebody like him, sure, but they wouldn't get anything done at this rate and the assassin was tired of lacking a physical tank during her adventures. It made it exhausting to be perfectly honest. One of her ears fell to the side as she watched Kosuke stutter through a refusal of joining any kind of party or group. A few moments later, she crossed her arms and scowled at him, "The answer is no? Who are you to say that after trying so hard with that last group? Do we not look strong enough to you?" She asked, stepping in front of her otter-man friend and sighing in exasperation, moving her hands to her hips. "Do you sit here all day, waiting for people to ask you to help them just so you can refuse? What kind of adventurer are you? You're a samurai. Honour-bound to protect all those who cannot protect themselves. You stand between danger and mankind not because you want to, but because it was your job, from the day you were created, to be the support that mankind leans on. And now you say no? Because you don't work well in a group?!" She cried, leaning forward, her eyes mere inches from his, "Sounds more like a Person of the Land than a Warrior to me."

The assassin stepped back, waving a hand, "Largoes here doesn't work very well in a group, either. But this isn't a group or a guild, we're just a group of adventurers, going to see what we can and keep the people safe. The crafters and the civilians alike. Not to mention the glory... Oh, the fame... You can't have that alone, no. You could defeat a million Peuchen," She started, wondering if the boy had even heard of the dungeon to the far west, "and nobody would know the difference because they didn't see it happen. You don't get a name like... the Crimson Blade," She paused to read the title on the boy's indicator before resuming, "for no reason. How is it you got that, anyway? I haven't heard any tales, your name in lights for it. You deserve recognition, but instead you let some weak party walk all over you and not even notice what you've achieved? Because why?"

She stomped her foot and pointed at him, "You're going to fight something today, and it's going to be with us. You don't even have to do anything but yell at the monsters and let them poke you, they won't live long if they don't notice me anyway." To emphasize her point, she pulled one of her blades from the sheaths behind her and tossed it into the air, where it spun several times before landing in her hand, the white-wrapped handle nestling perfectly in her palm as inky shadows followed its trail up, around, and back down again, settling along the edges of the dagger until it was deftly resheathed.

"So, what do you say? Gonna get on your feet and fight, or sit here all day telling people who need you, the Crimson Blade, Kosuke the Samurai, 'no?' Because we're not joking when we ask you to join us."

Just a simple 'no' answer and these two would leave. People always did when he said that, even if it also resulted in him being teased. No one bothered to put effort into recruiting a tank who wasn't overly-enthusiastic about grouping up, most people saw it as a moot effort. The otter saw it fit to question his refusal, making Kosuke worry he might have to tell them no again. Once was bad enough, he was going to sound like a real jerk if he had to keep refusing. Then Aiko decided to step up again, and this time she didn't look nearly as sweet or friendly as she had before. In fact she looked kind of pissed, making the samurai sweat as he recoiled a bit from her. "I-it's not that you d-don't look strong, honest!" he stammered, shaking his head and closing his eyes. She went on and on, this was the worst. Passing insults were easy to brush off, but when someone stood there and berated you that's when it got really tough. Kosuke couldn't do much besides freeze up under the scrutiny, just taking the verbal attack as Aiko shared what was on her mind. She wasn't wrong, he was an embarrassment of a samurai, he should be out there protecting people and fighting. He just couldn't, he wasn't up for the whole group prospect, not anymore. How else could he outright say he didn't work well in groups, what part of that didn't these two understand?

Again Aiko saw it fit to pick apart his entire argument for not joining them. Looking up at the assassin timidly he recoiled again as she continued, closing one eye and lifting up his shoulders. Everything she was saying was spot on and he hated it, he really did have no good reasons for avoiding joining other players. He never had luck with groups outside of the game and he had that sort of mentality even while inside Elder Tales. Maybe he should be seeing it more as the game he played for hours on end rather than like being in a class, or out in a sporting event. He didn't enjoy being lonely or a solo player all the time, he'd join people if it were easy for him, but it wasn't. Jeez... Why did she have to bring up his title? It was a unique one at that, and one not really befitting a person of his demeanor. Looking down at the ground he sighed softly, balling his hands into fists in his lap. "I... Beat a dungeon for it... And I g-got a rare weapon... That's how I got my t-title..." he explained, lifting his eyes again, "I d-don't let people walk all over me! I just..." How was he going to put this? Sighing yet again Kosuke turned his head and looked away, really hating having to explain himself like this. "I don't do groups... Like I said..."

Why was Aiko so dead set on him being a part of their team? No one had ever gone to such lengths to recruit him before, he didn't think anyone would want to. All he was for other players was a target, someone to berate and get a laugh at. Plenty of people had tried asking him but that always devolved into torment in some shape or form, so why were these two being different? He figured they were decently strong, Aiko was even a higher level than he was, so they would know what they were doing. And it was true, they needed a tank. Largoes' unusual build wouldn't let him tank properly, not unless he was fine with being killed in a matter of seconds. So they really did need him... What should he say? If he refused again then they would likely leave, never bother coming for him again. While it would be nice to return to his comfortable silence there was a nagging voice in his head to take the chance. He'd spent the entirety of the game thus far either within Akihabara or as close to the walls as you could, that wasn't living. And even someone as meek as he was grew tired of living like a rat after so long, he needed a change sooner or later. He wanted to accept, that was the decision Kosuke had arrived at. Getting it out however was proving to be a bit of a struggle.

After mouthing the words soundlessly a few times, Kosuke swallowed back hard and abruptly got to his feet, being only just taller than Aiko at full height. "F-Fine! I-'ll accept!" he said hastily, bowing as he spoke. Again his eyes where squeezed shut and his arms at his side, much too rigid for any relaxed conversation. "I-I'll be your tank, for a little while. But d-don't expect me to stay forever!" Maybe after this he could find some way to make a living that didn't involve working with others as much. Some subclasses ought to afford him the solitary he wanted, maybe something like a scribe, or an alchemist. Even to him they didn't sound exceptionally fun but they might be his only shot at not being bothered by people constantly. After a moment of being bowed Kosuke finally stood back up, his face flushed from embarrassment. Folding his arms tightly across his chest he sniffed a bit, scuffing one foot in the dirt. "So... W-What are you even asking me t-to do...?"

You see, that’s exactly why Largoes stuck around with Aiko so much. When she’s trying to get through to someone, it’s like she puts the nail on your head herself, and then proceeds to mercilessly pound on it to make sure it stays. He always has things to say or speculate on, but unless he’s out in the field, he ends up too worried over how to say it, that he trips over his own words. The otter chuckles a bit, grinning and rubbing the back of his head. “Ah, gee… Y-you’re making it sound like I’m useless, Aiko!” He laughs, the volume behind his voice feeling a little more emboldened. “Just hearing you chew someone else out is enough to get me feeling bad again, here..” Largoes smirks. The Guardian’s stance turned from a flustered and uneven footing, to having a surprisingly adept and confident air about him. He doesn’t have to worry too much over what Kosuke thought of him, and that bolstered his spirits.

“Well,” Largoes starts with a huff, looking over the Samurai over. Even a glance would tell anyone that his gear alone, checks out. “..You look like you’ve gotten a lot done by yourself. I mean, you don’t get to level 68 with an attitude like yours, without fighting for it. –B-believe me, I’d know.” He adds, speaking up. He grabs at his scarf with one hand for added moral support, nodding. He just had to recover from Aiko’s rather joke from earlier, it seems. He’s found his voice, again. “..The only question left to ask, I guess, is whether you have post-Apocalypse combat experience. Seeing as how you haven’t ventured out alone, despite being so jumpy about groups, well…” He notes out loud. “Crimson Blade or not, no bard will sing your name over the Shadow Dancer’s and Justicar’s if you can’t keep up with them! It’s only been a short while since the Apocalypse, but we’ve seen our share of trouble, already…” The otter grins a bit, hoisting his Sunset hammer off from his back. The orange veins pulse as if in response to his touch, the large hammer lifted seemingly effortlessly by him. The Guardian holds the great weapon over behind his shoulder, beaming a toothy grin. “We're wanderers of a sort, so we'll figure out where we're going soon enough. --Whadda ‘ya say we bring you up to speed, first?”

There were a few spots he wanted to check out, and they were all a fair distance away from Akihabara. There would be more than enough time to get acquainted with how the Samurai fights. Perhaps the other way around, too. He starts planning a route, and before long, becomes drawn to his thoughts, putting a hand to his face with a pensive look on his face. "...Maybe, if... Hm, that way? Or..." He mumbles choppily, suddenly having zoned out for the moment.

Aiko grinned and gave him a thumbs up. She always got her way if she really wanted something. The girl patted Largoes' shoulder, "He's right, but don't worry too much. It's not what you know, it's how easily you learn," She explained befoer they reached the question of where to go. "Let's just hit the fields and see what we can find today, get acquianted, see how it feels to work together," The girl nodded, as if approving of her own plan. "And we can go..." She closed her eyes and pointed one direction, then another, then another, and after a random, sporadic series of motions, she stopped cold, pointing northward. "That way! Let's just see what we find out there, alright?"

She then remembered something Kosuke mentioned in his sorry excuse for accepting their offer. "You said you're going to... tank for us?" She seemed to taste something foul as she said the words, shaking her head, "Never use that phrase again... You looked like a good addition, that's all, and now you don't have to worry about leaving the city and facing whatever's out there, cause you have us... Got it? Good." She hoped this guy wouldn't stick to the way of thinking he'd just shown... How she loathed when somebody exploited mechanics of the world. Where was the fun in that? "Largoes here likes his pretty armour, but it's only good for blocking spells, so it would be really appreciated if you could take some attacks for us," She proposed boldly. "Of course, if you need to tag out, let us know, we haven't... made friends with many healers in our travels, sadly." She shrugged as though they weren't missing an essential part of their regular team.

As they prepared to set out, they all walked together toward the Northern gates of Akihabara. As they walked, Aiko opened her menu and gradually began to equip her armour. Changing into it was far easier than changing back out of it. She would need privacy to do so, at least. However, by the time they reached the gate, she was in her usual combat gear again. She looked like a proper assassin now, rather than a regular girl dressed for a Spring day. Her entire demeanour changed as well as she began to carry herself with her chin high and her hands interlocked behind her back. She was quieter as well, speaking very little as they passed through the gates and into the danger zone. How nice, She thought bitterly, that the great and powerful Shiroe and his Knights would allow us to walk past the Guild Hall on our way out of the city... It was despicable, buying up public land or a building and lording power over people. It wasn't that he was abusing the power, but more that he could; it wouldn't be fair to anybody should he decide it was time to. That was more power than anybody deserved; luckily, she only used the hall for the bank, and should it come to it, she'd cross the continent to use a different one.

"Monsters at the front lines are too weak; we can practice here, but I'd say to really see how our strength matches up, we go deeper. After all, any of us could slay these ones single-handedly. It could, however, take quite a while to go so far, are the two of you up for that?" She asked seriously, turning around on her heel to face the two warriors, her arms crossed. Unlike before, she wasn't acting playful or teasing them; her gaze was deadpan as she asked her question. Rather than her ears twitching, they stood tall and attentive, keeping close tabs on the environment, keeping her prepared for any event.

"If you're prepared for that kind of excursion, Crimson Blade, I recommend you stand tall and face it, because no matter how much experience you had before, you'll have to learn to feel some pain, got that?" She pointed out matter-of-factly. However, she did not offer him a way to go back on his agreement to join them, her voice made it clear that this was only a warning, due to his clear lack of experience of combat after the Apocalypse. If he'd had more, he'd have known how to steel himself and be useful in any other party long ago.

Tamina's eyebrow twitched irritably as she watched the little feline staring at her, watching her every move. "Come on, kitty, I just want to feed you! And maybe hug you...brush you...and y'know, give you a little kissie on the nose, nothing too crazy!" she said, although she was talking to no one in particular except herself and well, the cat. As soon as she took a step forward, the kitty ran off down an alley at full speed, making Tamina curse loudly, probably scaring a few of the adventurers out and about. "Damn it, get back here!" The brunette yelled as she then made chase down the alleyway that the cat had tried to take refuge in. She spotted the kitten once more, who mewed at her, then ran out of the alley and into the busy streets of Akihabara. She kept trucking on after the little brown kitten, thinking that with just sheer will alone she would catch this sneaky little kitty and make him hers.

As she was trying to keep an eye on the kitten as she ran through the streets, it was becoming increasingly hard to do so, as the kitten would zigzag between people's legs, purposefully trying to disorient Tamina. She growled when she quickly realized what the kitten was doing, making her even more frustrated. Come on, why was this cat being so elusive? She just wanted to love it! Hell, she was even wearing her damn cat ears to try and relate with the little feline! Oh, she was going to get this little kitty, and she was going to make the kitten love her, just wait and see-

Tamina was paying attention to the cat as she was running, but her thoughts distracted her and she had completely disregarded everything else around her. The cat went in between a person's legs and instead of side-stepping past the person, she ran right into them, causing them both to fall over. "Oof!" She had closed her eyes when they had made contact, a natural reflex. "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry I didn't mean to....EEE! KITTY!" The brunette's eyes lit up when she looked down at who she had tackled, her bosom right in the poor guy's face; she didn't notice any of this, though. All she noticed were the adorable ears this person was sporting.

Without any warning, Tamina took the ears in her hands and began to feel them. "So soft!" She cried happily, continuing her onslaught of pets and groping. "I never knew that ears could BE so soft...and the color, perfect!" She continued on speaking to herself about this person's ears, obviously ecstatic about the whole thing. When she finally realized that the person was completely still and froze in place, she carefully sat up on the person's lap, scratching the back of her head. "Oh geez, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to molest you there....You are just so cute! Can I keep you?" Tamina asked excitedly, a small smile on her lips. Her senses finally realized that there were two other people standing beside them, and she looked up at them to see that they, too, had animal-like appearances. She squealed.

"You are ALL animals! Ah, so cute!" She put her hands up to her fake cat ears. "I'm just a human, but I love animals, so I got these cat ears, see?" She explained, the smile never leaving her face, and sadly, her body never leaving the poor guy's that she was sitting on.

These two Adventurers, they were so close with one another. Kosuke was almost envious of their relationship that they had, he couldn't act so casually with anyone in this game. If they got along this well then they probably worked well together too, so working with them should be safe. Even if he did feel a little cornered into accepting the invitation to join them at the very least he would learn how well he fought with a new group, that was something to look forward too, he guessed. With these two seeming so enthusiastic about grouping up he really ought to try and extend the same, but it was hard to really put himself out there. Glancing up at Largoes when he was addressed the samurai looked away embarrassed, pulling at a tuft of his cloak nervously. True, he had very little experience in combat since the Apocalypse. He'd ventured outside the walls once or twice to try fighting, so he knew the traditional style didn't work. Not well anyways, it was horribly clunky and awkward. Obviously people had figured out how to fight after the fact since parties went out like clockwork, but that secret had thus far eluded him. Nodding his head in agreement Kosuke managed the smallest of smiles, his hand resting on the hilt of his weapon. "Alright... Uh... If you don't m-mind, that is..."

The eagerness on Aiko's part to get moving was palpable, as if her eccentric way of picking where they were going wasn't indicative enough. She was just randomly picking a spot then? Well that couldn't be all bad, everything near Akihabara was well below their levels so it ought not matter much what they were facing. Even if he couldn't completely figure out how combat worked just yet he would be able to take a beating before dying, so there was some leeway in his learning. Even with a location in mind they weren't on their way out yet, there was something more the assassin had to get off her chest apparently. Why was she so off-put by him calling himself a tank? That's what he was, after all, it wasn't wrong. Was she angry he was using game terms still? Well stuck in Elder Tales or not it was still just that, a game. Real life was nothing like this, Kosyke couldn't really see it for much more than that just yet. Plenty of people had come to accept this as reality and while he accepted being stuck here he still had trouble seeing it as anything but Elder Tales. Since it was easier to agree though and avoid confrontation he nodded his head, sweating slightly under the scrutiny of Aiko. "O-Of course... Sorry. And I'll let you know if I n-need to, uh... Tag out." Weird, he'd never traded out with someone before in a fight, even if it were another tank. These two must not be used to regular groups, like raids, which he'd been a member of plenty of times prior to the Apocalypse.

So this was it then, he was really going along with them. Kosuke didn't quite know why himself, he was always so against grouping up and fighting as of late. Yet his legs moved of their own volition now, and one after another they forged him along after Aiko and Largoes. Bubbling up inside himself was part anxiety and excitement over the prospect of battling again, it would certainly be a change from his typical hiding in the shadow of a tree. If they were going into combat he needed to be in his gear then, not this simple tunic and cloak. With a simple flick of the wrist he traded in his casual wear for his samurai armor, the plates clunking together with dull thuds as it appeared on his person. It was so odd how he could feel the weight of it now, and even more so how easily he could move in spite of that. Were this the real world he was positive he'd be near incapacitated over the sheer weight of this, and yet it barely felt different than his clothing before. Just as well, he'd be pretty hapless as a tank if he couldn't move at all. Glancing ahead at Aiko he was interested in how she had changed as well, and more so the change in her demeanor. She'd gone from being a bit eccentric to walking with a purpose, like she was all business. Why was that, Kosuke wondered? Was that whole attitude he'd seen a moment ago just an act to get him to join? No, that wasn't fair, he shouldn't be cynical. She had a reason and that was hers alone, it wasn't his place to question it.

Aiko really was all fun and no games now, even her voice had deadpanned from what it was before. She was kind of scary this way, Kosuke thought, probably best to try and just smile and nod then. Doing just that to signal he was ready he glanced to Aiko once more, his smile quickly waning when she mentioned pain. He knew that was going to be a part of it of course, he just didn't know how bad it would be. That only served to rile up his nerves again, but at this point it was much too late to back out. If he chickened out again and went back to hiding then this could well be his last chance to do anything, he might have to settle for a more sedentary existence. "R-Right... Understood!" Kosuke answered, nodding his head quickly. He couldn't help but wonder, was he a burden to them? His inexperience was plain as day to the pair but they invited him along anyways, maybe out of pity of seeing him alone. He would have to try his hardest to stay in this group, if he didn't meet their expectations then it would end the same as if he ran away again. Inhaling deeply he tried to steel himself against what was to come, following after the others after a moment.

Naturally anxious, Kosuke had a plethora of questions and worries going through his mind. How well would he actually hold up in combat? What little he had tried since the Apocalypse had been anything but stellar, he'd gotten cold feet and ran from creatures several levels lower than himself. Actually coming face to face with monsters was vastly different than seeing them on a computer screen, they were far more intimidating regardless of level. The samurai wasn't sure how well he would be able to keep aggro of the monsters around him either, considering he now could only see the ones in his direct line of sight. Perhaps the benefit of that was the fact everyone in his group was a single target attacker, meaning so long as they didn't go nuts he could hold the hate easy enough. What if he made a mistake though, and they ended up wiping because of him? That shouldn't happen, they were probably going to fight low leveled monsters, 40 at best. Even so Kosuke had to worry he'd somehow mess this up, his own inexperience lending itself to that concern. With a furrowed brow he was staring down at the ground as he mulled this over, trying to reconcile with himself that he would do fine. Had he not been staring into the dirt he might have noticed someone barreling towards him, and he may not have yelped aloud when he was hit broadside by said person.

With his eyes squeezed shut Kosuke couldn't well see who had knocked him over, but that didn't mean he couldn't feel anything. Aside from the weight now on top of him he felt something very soft, and round, shoved in his face. Confused he opened one of his eyes to find out what it was and immediately turned a brilliant shade of red, both eyes shooting open in shock. Why were there breasts in his face?! What in the world...? Having not even realized his ears and tail had sprung as a result of the surprise the samurai made an odd sound when his ears were tugged, scrunching up his shoulders and peeling his face away from the girl's chest. She was just sat there... Completely oblivious to the fact he was very well aware of what was going on... Playing with his ears. Kosuke felt like his head might explode from all the blood rushing to it, he desperately needed to get out of this situation. Trying to open his mouth to ask her to move all he could manage were silent gasps, his wits had completely left him. He couldn't do this, no way. A girl, a girl was sitting on him, and she'd put her chest in his face! It was a miracle that he hadn't just passed out from the shock, though he was getting precariously close to that point.

After a bit more of possessive groping of his ears the girl finally registered they must be attached to someone, addressing Kosuke in the least apologetic way possible. She did say sorry, but throwing in 'molest' and asking to keep him really made it hard to appreciate that fact. Still completely at a loss for words all he could do was shake his head, his eyes desperately trying to find somewhere that wasn't on the girl. Why him? Largoes was a little otter, he was furry and everything, why couldn't the girl go for him instead? She was an odd one, this girl, going on about animals and how they were all cute. Had he more than the backbone of a slug Kosuke might capitalize on the fact an adorable girl was perched on his lap, but instead all he could do was flounder like a fish out of water. Goodness knows he must have looked the part, opening and closing his mouth repeatedly as he struggled to find words. Finally Kosuke managed to find his voice again, getting out a rather lame, meek request. "P-Please get off of m-me...?"

Largoes walked out of the city with the others, ending up a pace or two ahead while they were changing. He’d fallen into the habit of changing his gear physically, instead of through the menu. Every time he changed the clothes on his torso, it always made a mess out of his scarf. Quizzically, instead of just making it a habit to fix the long piece of neck-wear, he just made it a policy to change normally, whenever possible. His strange, ethereal shield and crystalline, clear mallet at his side, and his menacing obsidian hammer latched precariously on his back. Though, as he made his way outside with Aiko and Kosuke, the idea had only just sunk in that he was already in his combat gear, that whole time—Meaning he’d slept in it the night before….

…Which means, whatever antics he’d gotten to while inebriated, somehow involved him changing into this. “O-oh crud… What happened, last night…?” He mumbles to himself, shaking his head out. N-nothing from last night that actually happened has come back to haunt him, so it must have been a mostly harmless affair. He brings his scarf all the way up to half-cover his snout, narrowing his eyes a bit, as if trying to remember. All he knows of his encounter with booze is that he loses presence of mind really quickly.

As Aiko and Kosuke exchanged words, he simply gave the Fox Tail a knowing nod and a smirk as his thoughts are drawn more inward.
He looks back to Akihabara with a glance, deep in thought. Shiroe… Someone so influential in this world, his name showed up on some event item flavor text, and even the occasional mention from People of the Land, as far as all the way back home—Far from the Crescent Islands. Word of his exploits and accomplishments with the Debauchery Tea Party, that his name alone stood out from that group. Someone with such influence that even before the Apocalypse, the world had been shaped by him. Mere weeks after the fact, he’d somehow made a town out of a dystopia-- a community out of a confused gaggle.
Largoes grips his hammer tighter in his hand as he holds it over his shoulder, still. I’ve got a long way to go… B-but I’ll make my mark. I swear it.

The Guardian’s thoughts are interrupted as a blurred, quick movement catches his eye. —An enemy? he thinks sharply to himself, narrowing his eyes as his fur bristles slightly. Or, wait… Would the Sunrise do better, here? I may need to try and distract the threat, before the Samurai is wounded… In an instant, the blur quickly made its way around Kosuke, but before he could even notice what had just happened, he barely manages to reposition his hammer before another flash of movement was upon the group. “K-Kosuke!” He squeaks, alarmed. He reflexively rears his Sunset hammer back, freezing in place and blinking as his thoughts catch up with his body.

“…B-buh?” He murmurs, his stance relaxing as he tries to make sense of what was happening. A girl had full-on tackled the poor Wolf Fang, seemingly bursting with all kinds of colorful emotions. This wasn’t an act of aggression, clearly. She was excited, apologetic, and awe-struck, all at the same time as she fawned over Kosuke’s wolf ears and squealing something about a kitty. Or, wait.. Did she think he’s…

“—Pff!” Largoes stifles some laughter, clearing his throat with a cough as he manages to keep composed. “Ah, m-miss, er…” He starts, peering at the girl as her information pops up in his view. A Cleric? And a Title… But it looks to be purely cosmetic, as her subclass is still Dancer. Strange. “Miss T-Tamina… I think the boy needs to breathe.” He notes, crouching down a little as he gives a crooked, nervous smile. It doesn’t even cross his mind to correct the kitty/wolf perception, but it’d be a horrible waste of morale to send Kosuke to the Cathedral after the inspiring little pep-talk they’d all shared, not too long ago.

Aiko yelped as her focus was broken, something had darted between Kosuke's legs and dove up into her. The assassin caught... whatever it was, just a moment before she saw Kosuke get tackled. As her gaze went down, she felt the fur between her fingers and saw the animal she was now holding. "O-oh, hi," She said, perplex. The cat gave a tiny 'nya' and hopped down, running off again once it knew that its pursuer was occupied. Aiko watched in utter horror as this 'Tamina' touched Kosuke's ears and looked each of them over. She squealed and bounced about and was freaking out, Aiko could hardly handle it. Her ears fell to the side, as she stood there in shock, unsure of exactly what to say. Her tail wrapped anxiously about her leg as she blinked, waiting... waiting... Then, finally, as her face was turning red, she stomped her foot the ground.

"What the actual Hell?" She asked, not sure why they were all so unsure of what to do. "For Pete's sake, guys, it's just a girl," She muttered, stepping closing and grabbing Tamina by her shirt, hoisting her up to her feet. It was now that Aiko realized that the other girl was taller than her and for the briefest of moments, she deflated. God dammit... Can't I be taller than just one person? She silently asked herself in pure frustration, just before she noticed Tamina's chest as well. At this point, she was about ready to kill this girl for simply existing. Her voice was nearly silent as she spoke to herself, "You think you missed out by being human..." She said it as though neither of them had actually chosen their own avatars. Dear god, this girl was wearing cat ears...

The assassin girl crossed her arms, gathering her wits once more, huffing as she blew a strand of hair from her face and bit the inside of her cheek anxiously. "If you'll excuse us, we were going to go monster hunting." She crossed her arms, waiting... "A sorry would be nice." One eyebrow quirked, she looked to the two 'men,' waiting for them to say anything... Something gave her the feeling they didn't much mind having such... cumbersome breasts in their face. She had to physically fight her urge to hit them both. Disgusting. The disdain for the situation showed on her face, but dammit if it wasn't convenient that Tamina was a healer... Aiko wasn't one for being so adamant on fulfilling roles, but having somebody to keep them healthy would be extremely useful... Why couldn't it have been somebody... less... her.

With all of the ruckus going on caused by her own mischief, Tamina giggled slightly and scratched the back of her head in an apologetic fashion before she was about to get up...but something or someone else beat her to it as she felt a hand grab the back of her shirt and haul her up off of the Wolf Fang boy. "Eek!" She cried, feeling as if she was being choked by the fabric of her clothes. She looked behind her when she was on her own two feet and seen a cute little fox girl behind her. "Oh hi," the brunette said with a smile, although she could tell by the way the girl had grabbed her and what she said, she knew that this girl took a dislike towards her.

"I did say sorry...." Tamina mumbled, feeling a bit dejected at how this girl hated her already; they didn't even know each other! She glanced over at the man who was an otter and smiled brightly at him. "Yeah...sorry everyone, I just got distracted by a really cute kitty, but I lost sight of him..." The girl apologized again anyway, trying to explain her antics as to why she had tackled the Wolf Fang to the ground. Tamina held out her hand for the boy she had hit to the ground, hoping she would take his hand. "Hee, sorry, I thought you were the cat I was chasing, I thought that it turned into a human!" She exclaimed, a small blush on her face at how silly that had sounded when she said it.

"Oh, you guys are going monster hunting huh? Be careful, I hear that there are pkers around this area right now. That is why you are seeing a lot of people still inside the city," Tamina added her little tidbit of information. It was true that in some areas the adventurers were going were safe, but around the area of this city they were currently in were pkers lying in wait for some other people to venture out into the beginning areas. Some people were just plain cruel. She took a look at the information displayed across the other adventurer's heads, finding out their names and such. So, the otter's name was Largoes. He seemed really nice, and he had a really nice fashion sense, the scarf was just adorable! Next was Kosuke, the poor boy she had tackled in her mission to get that kitty, he seemed really nice also, if not a bit shy. Both of the boys seemed a bit shy, but not the girl they were with. Her name was Aiko, and she could tell that she was a sassy little fox with a big bite to go with her yip.

Kosuke was... Well, he didn't quite know himself right now. In part shocked, in part uneasy, in part aroused (yes, he is a male after all), and completely baffled by what was happening. Where in the world had Tamina come from, and why had she just all of a sudden barreled into him like that? These thoughts only could occur after her rather modest chest was removed from his face, perhaps sparing him death by asphyxiation. Breathing a little easier once the girl had removed herself from him the Samurai pulled himself up into a sitting position, rubbing at his forehead. Right, some way to start off his first excursion in some time. He'd nearly died in town, what a way for the tank of the group to go out. Looking up at the others he smiled nervously as Aiko began snapping at Tamina, wanting to ask the assassin to back off. He knew there hadn't been any malicious intent behind that, it was an honest accident. An accident that near made him pass out, but an accident nonetheless. Besides, weren't Aiko and Largoes trying to make friends of him moments ago? So why not this girl too?

Looking to the hand he was offered the Samurai accepted it hesitantly, nodding as he got to his feet. Soon as he was upright once more Kosuke moved away a bit, dusting himself off with a blush. Such a horribly embarrassing predicament, he really just wanted to go hide somewhere for a while after that. Tamina appeared totally unfazed by it all as well which he hadn't a clue how that might be remotely possible. It took a real special sort of person to essentially molest someone and carry on like nothing had happened. He rather wished Aiko wouldn't be so determined to get an apology, it was creating tension and he really hated tension. Actually just the two girls being here was tension in of itself, suddenly Kosuke was rather regretting his agreement to join them. In spite of the moderately hostile greeting that she had been given Tamina still was kind enough to give them a bit of a forewarning, informing them of the PKers that had been outside of Akihabara as of late. He knew of them of course, reclusive as he might be he wasn't completely oblivious to the happenings around them. Knowing this sparked a rare bit of anger in Kosuke, he absolutely loathed PKers. They were the worst sort of people in the game, deriving pleasure and enjoyment from killing others. Sure, death had little to no meaning here as you just respawned, but it didn't make the act any less deplorable.

"T-Thank you for that, Tamina. We'll uh... Keep it in mind," Kosuke said, smiling shyly as he bowed to the girl. She had no reason to tell them that so he should be grateful, they all should. Even Aiko who looked to be displeased with Tamina's very existence should be happy knowing that. If they were careful enough then they should be able to travel along with no problem. Should they run into a group of PKers it could become quite messy quite fast. They had no real support amongst them and no healers, meaning if a fight broke out they had to finish it quickly or likely fall. He was durable, but even the mightiest of tanks were not invincible, and he was far from the mightiest. The reality of the situation was they really could use someone in the way of a healer, and it just so happened this random girl with them fit that description. Convenient though it may be Kosuke wasn't wholly sure how well he would hold up to her bubbly attitude. Conversation was something he generally shied away from but he could easily see Tamina trying to speak with them near constantly. On top of that there was the already brewing disdain from Aiko, something she was making very little if any effort to conceal. If they couldn't get along then their group chemistry would be poor, and they may well as not have the healer if they couldn't work together.

Aiko might well be mad for him asking this, but it had to be said. The chances of their succeeding would be infinitely better if they had a healer along with them. Swallowing back some nerves Kosuke rubbed the back of his head, his eyes settling on Tamina as he smiled nervously. "If y-you're not busy... We uh... We could use a healer..." he mumbled, shifting around on his feet, "I mean... If you can't then t-that's fine too... Just offering..." Really he couldn't see anything bad coming of Tamina joining them on their outing. He hadn't the gall to say it aloud but he wanted to tell Aiko she would have to deal with it, they needed a healer and there was no getting around that fact. She may not like to think in terms of game roles but they were not going to last long on their own. "What do you guys think...? C-Can she come...?"