Crowvette

Royal Rumble!

@Hammerman@KillamriX88

Lise's smile shifted ever so slightly. An ornery boy who was part of the girls' entourage decided to make his lack of class known to all. If he was close to the crimson dressed one, it was clear that he was simply exploiting her lack of awareness on her state of dress for his own sick benefit. He also spouted some delusion about blowing Lise up - which was preposterous, of course, because Lise would have remembered engaging in single combat against someone so uncouth. Perhaps it was something that only he, and no other, could have considered a victory. It was sad to see such things espoused in public - no doubt even the commoners in the crowd swelled with pity for the poor boy.

Lise would have had him evicted from the ball - and, of course, introduced to her castle's oubliette, if this happened in her homeland - had the crimson-dressed girl not spoken up. At least she was perfectly cordial - it made Lise wonder what she saw in her loud friend. Lise gathered herself for a moment, letting the flare of annoyance in her chest settle, before replying to the girl, "If your... friend would prefer to dance first, that is understandable." Lise intentionally refused to face the boy as she spoke, and added, "Perhaps he is simply worried I would steal you away?" before laughing in a way that only a wealthy princess such as herself could.

Royal Rumble!

Lise

@Hammerman
Lise was having a wonderful time mingling through the party. There were occasional moments of confusion that broke up the merriment, though. It seemed as though Rhean fashion was more akin to some kind of danse macabre festival than that of a high society masquerade. Lise wondered for a moment if there could have been some kind of miscommunication, but quickly dismissed it. If there were any issues, it was certainly not on her end.

Lise's polite smile tugged slightly towards a one of pure ire as she spied some of the... "fashion" of Rhea. One in particular made Lise almost gasp in surprise. It was very clear that the dress was several sizes too short for the girl wearing it - and the girl seemed to have not a shred of awareness of the fact. Actually, had Lise not seen the lower half of the dress, she would have considered it very fashionable - perhaps even one of the best in the ball so far. But... its existence could be considered a crime. A crime against public decency. Lise wasn't sure if this was some kind of traditional Rhean dress, but she had to do something about it.

She couldn't simply shout and order the offending girl out of the ball. No. Lise had to approach the situation with more grace. All of Rhea's eyes were on House Valois-Saint-Remy. Lise slowly made her way through the crowd, all while greeting members of the ball. Eventually, she stopped in front of the red-dressed girl. She was with some others -also incorrectly dressed, though not in the same way as her- but it was a simple manner to be alone with her. The crowd had already been subtly been parted by her shadows to give Lise some space to approach the indecently garbed one.

Lise politely extended her hand to the crimson-dressed girl. "Masked maiden of Rhea, shall we have a dance together?" Around, there were slight whisperings of confusion, or perhaps gossip. Did those around her consider it strange that Lise would pick such a partner for a dance? The real question was, of course, why would Lise care what these commoners thought? The ball was less about dancing to Lise and more about learning the social arena of Rhea either way.

Royal Rumble!

Lise opening The Ball at Rhean Center

It all began with a bang. Or rather, dozens of them. Fireworks were let off to commemorate the opening of the Rhean Center, which over the past month had been turned into a splendid ballroom to benefit those who worked to respond to the crisis with the cultists.

Lise overlooked the entrance. Her shadows were behind the doors, ready to officially begin the ball. She took a deep breath, and turned on the microphone. "Citizens of Rhea! Consider this your official sign that the Valois-Saint-Remy Benefit Ball for the brave men and women that helped in Rhea's time of crisis is open! Let the ball... Begin!"

With her signal, the doors were opened, and the shadows disappeared. People would begin to filter in, some marveling at the conversion of the convention center into an opulent ballroom, others simply trying to find familiar faces.

Of course, this was only one half of the ball. The adults who entered were off on the other side of the convention hall; Lise specifically wanted an area for the members of Rhean schools that contributed to the effort. The staff obliged this, thinking that the bossy princess would likely ruin an adult attempt at a ball either way.

The venue featured an impressive area for a DJ, which seemed conspicuously empty. 'Those fools... Insisting on a DJ stand when such a thing runs counter to the elegance of a ball...' Lise groaned for a moment as she looked at the eyesore, before regaining her composure. People had begun to fill up the room. It was time for Lise to enter.

Descending stairs that were specifically set up to give the true ballroom experience (and did not actually lead anywhere), flanked on either side by shadow maids holding her dress, Lise took the attention of the crowd. She was wearing an ornate mask that matched her blue dress, both a display befitting a princess at her own masquerade ball. Her dress was long and flowing, not overly adorned with bows and frills as some may have expected of her, but instead perfectly matching with her golden hair that gently waved with each step she took. The dress gradually deepened in color downwards, until it nearly matched the color of her shadow servants at the hem. Lise had taken a daring fashion move with this dress - it exposed her shoulders and had no sleeves whatsoever - but she deemed it necessary considering the strange fashions that Rhea was home to.

Stopping near the bottom of the staircase, she procures a microphone from one of her servants. "Let the masquerade ball begin in its full splendor! Enjoy the benevolent gesture of the great House Valois-Saint-Remy!" Lise proclaimed, officially starting the school edition of the ball. Classical music began to play, setting the tone of high society that Lise wished for. The low murmur of the crowd began to mix with the music as the members of the ball mingled and talked amongst themselves.

Lise held her place upon the stairs for a few moments, looking through the crowd. She of course was going to mingle amongst the commoners, but she did want to seek out her dearest cousin first and foremost.

Lostman Graffiti

Fumiko inside the sharehouse

Fumiko caught her breath as she stood in the doorway. "Whoof... I should have caught a picture of that... Imagine what the college social page would say if they saw that thing right outside campus..."

Of course, Fumiko knew deep in her heart that they would likely delete it immediately in order to keep up a nice appearance. Plus, it wasn't like she was going to stand still to get a nice picture of it. 'Maybe if Aya was around...' Fumiko hoped that something that crazy would be enough to warrant a picture from Aya. If not, Fumiko would have to reasses what kind of person Aya was.

Fumiko took her wrist back from Otoya. "...I'm going to need a baseball bat if those things are going to be hanging around that alleyway from now on." She mumbled. It was half joke, half truth. She really was going to look online for a baton once she got into her room.

Fumiko felt a shiver down her spine as her thoughts returned to the rats. Those things being that close to the sharehouse did not inspire good feelings in her. It was already far from airtight, and those things could probably just chew through the wall if they wanted to. Even if she did have a weapon, one of those in the dead of night... She didn't want to think about it.

Lostman Graffiti

Fumiko Outside the Sharehouse

Fumiko gave a quick nod to Aya as she passed, and then to Otoya as he greeted her. She was actually a little surprised that there was so much night traffic, but given how awful the days had become it could be easily explained. The smell of the alleyway could also likely be explained by the awfulness of the day. This was not the kind of aura that garbage normally gave off. It had to have been worsened by a combination of heat and humidity blasting the area. And then she saw it in the passing flash of a car's lights. A giant rat.

Fumiko had dealt with various messy areas when she started wandering the city. Lots of dusty alleyways, abandoned garbage, graffiti, you name it. Despite that, she had never really made her peace with the type of creatures that skitter around in darkness. If she had to say what it was that really unnerved her, it was the mere sound of them moving. Adding in darkness to the situation, where your ears can only barely hear it - not enough to know where exactly they are, but enough to know they were near. She even got uncomfortable when she heard the clacking of dog's nails against a hard floor, despite dogs being much more friendly. Maybe she wasn't really an animal person, deep down.

Fumiko backpedaled behind Otoya, gripping his arm and putting him between her and the rat. "H-How is that so huge?!" Her voice cracked slightly as she stuttered, betraying her fear. She wasn't interested in playing tough with something so big. Plus, she was better off trusting in Otoya than she was fending it off on her own.

'I really need a collapsible baton or something to carry...' Fumiko grimaced as she thought about her options for striking the animal. She probably would be best off just running if it kept coming.

Lostman Graffiti

Fumiko outside the sharehouse

Fumiko looked over to the alleyway. Crows were supposed to be smart, so maybe something actually interesting was going on. The fact that they were swooping back and forth was what piqued Fumiko's interest most. Wouldn't they just fly away if it was someone throwing open a door to dump their garbage? Fumiko's knowledge of bird behavior was limited to stuff that she caught while falling asleep with nature documentaries playing on the TV, so she couldn't be sure what it really meant. She furrowed her brow. Was this a mating season for birds?

Fumiko gave up trying to remember her animal education. 'Well, if I spent this much time thinking about it, I'd probably end up wondering if I didn't go... Even though it's likely just a dumpster with a week-old lunch in it.' Fumiko didn't intend to make an excursion out of things, but surely checking out a nearby alley was within reason. She cautiously approached the alleyway, trying to take it wide. While they were interesting creatures, she also didn't really want the flurry of crows to ruin her clothes with discarded garbage... or something worse.

Lostman Graffiti

Fumiko at the sharehouse

Fumiko set down her bowl. In truth, she had a craving for something fried for dinner, but she wasn't going to say no to someone cooking for her. Not that she did much with her time during the afternoon and early evening. She nearly fell asleep reading for a class, scrolled through a dozen sites with her phone, and... What else happened...?

Fumiko's eyebrow twitched. She couldn't think with the radio on. It just kept saying the same thing, over and over again. Like it was trying to lure her into a trance where the same things just continued to happen forever and everything bled into a gray mess. It made Fumiko want to intentionally start a fire in the mountains. At least if she gets caught, they could talk about how a college girl finally snapped and committed arson.

Fumiko rose out of her thoughts when she realized that she was gritting her teeth. She furtively glanced around the table, unsure if people realized it. She herself hadn't realized it, but something had soured her mood this evening. Maybe it wasn't actually anything in particular. She needed to cool off either way.

She stood up from the table, taking her bowl to the already-full sink. "I'm going to get some air. Just for a little bit." She mumbled. She wished that she could use an easy excuse like a smoking break, but she couldn't bring herself to actually do it. Even if it looked cool. "Ah. Thanks for the meal." Fumiko added, realizing she hadn't thanked Sayuri.

Her trip outside wasn't planned to be one of her city-wide nighttime strolls. She just needed to step outside for a bit. Plus, the last time she went out for the entire night, the group saddled her with extra chores because she couldn't refuse them in person. She had become wary of that ever since.

Lostman Graffiti

Fumiko at the Northwestern District

"Ah..." Fumiko felt a flush of heat reach her face. She was being so protective, suspicious, and paranoid, but it was unfounded. The man left the shop with the girl, who had immediately sunk Fumiko's suspicion upon waking.

'Well, you can't always be right...' She tried to console herself. But she felt the embarrassment anyway, no matter how much she rationalized her actions. She had become more familiar with the feeling of embarrassment recently, as she'd been trying her best to try new things. But being familiar didn't make it feel less bad.

The detail around the little girl had dissolved not soon after Gotou left, leaving Fumiko alone on the sofa. She was back to square one: Looking at a hot walk home. Fumiko kicked herself for not asking to walk back to the sharehouse with Aya. Sharing the misery likely would have improved the walk, but Fumiko was too busy being self-conscious to think of it. She needed to work on that. She'd never find a way out of monotony if she was so worried with what people thought of her.

'...That's easy to say, of course...' Fumiko avoided the eyes of the shop regulars as she stepped out, beginning her walk back to the sharehouse.

Lostman Graffiti

Fumiko at the Northwestern District

Fumiko nodded intently at Aya's question, as if she was waiting for someone else to assure her suspicions. She in turn replied to Gotou, "Either way, I don't think we should be moving her until she comes to again. So if you could lay her down..." Fumiko felt a little emboldened by Aya's question, ignoring how it was likely easily answered. She gestured back to the sofa with a polite smile on her face. "We should let her recover fully, don't you think?"

Fumiko wondered if she was taking things too far. But it was kind of exciting to assume the man was some kind of criminal. Like she was stopping a crime. Aya had voiced suspicion about it as well, so Fumiko was affirmed in her suspicions, clearly. Plus, if she was right, it was ostensibly the right thing to do. Fumiko quickly glanced to her bag, which had her phone in it. 'Just in case.' She thought, as she casually grabbed her bag, sitting it on her lap.

Lostman Graffiti

Fumiko at the Northern District

@ERode@OwO

Fumiko was happy to see that someone had come to pick up the kid, but she felt a slight tinge of suspicion. Maybe she was being paranoid. 'Well, kids run off all the time... But at the same time, running so frantically she fainted? Well if she's sickly, then maybe her running at all could cause her to collapse...' She couldn't quite settle on an answer. She took a sideways glance at the others, hoping to find something in their expressions to affirm her suspicion.

Fumiko stopped as she realized she was staring at the man with a slight look of suspicion. She quickly put on a smile and replied politely, "Good to meet you, Gotou Matsumaru-san. My name is Morita Fumiko." She bowed and sat back down next to Suzuha, before her curiousity got the best of her. "Why was Suzuha running at such a time like this?"

She made sure to inch closer to Suzuha, as if that would somehow help protect the little girl.