TaroAndSelia

✧ Talrae ✧ (LOOKING FOR CO-GM)

Whoops. I forgot to @Tybalt Capulet and @Ithradine again. Sorry!

✧ Talrae ✧ (LOOKING FOR CO-GM)

Alisea led the way out of the inn and toward the market. She set a strong pace that would give them time to do all the shopping they needed, but left enough leisure in it to speak comfortably. It was comfortable for her, at least, and she suspected she would have the lowest agility between the three.

"What do you need to buy this morning, Reylan?" she asked as they strolled down the street. "The first place I want to stop is a blacksmith's shop; I have some items I need to sell off. After that we can go anywhere, as long as we visit the Action and Spell teachers at the market."

Alisea noted, not without some displeasure, that as they drew nearer to the market, they found more and more players slumped against walls or crouched in doorways. It seemed many had still not found their resolve to press forward; indeed, some appeared to have had so little will they stayed on the street all night. But, and Alisea could declare this definitively because she had walked this path barely twelve hours earlier, there were far fewer players than there were yesterday floating listlessly about. Today the game would begin in earnest.

✧ Talrae ✧ (LOOKING FOR CO-GM)

@demonspade64 Y'know, if Karma's up for it and can eat fast, he could probably come shopping, too.

✧ Talrae ✧ (LOOKING FOR CO-GM)

... I know I read everything once. I should probably go read it all a second, third, then fourth time. I suppose it's like a King James; there's too much to catch it all the first time through.

✧ Talrae ✧ (LOOKING FOR CO-GM)

@HueMan Is there an established price for selling items?

✧ Talrae ✧ (LOOKING FOR CO-GM)

At the break of dawn

The first, faint fingers of dawn light crawled through the room's only window. Alisea's eyes fluttered open in response. She couldn't make out more than the vaguest of outlines in the near-darkness. Rather than try to rise immediately, Alisea first called up her menu. The screen that appeared before her was lit clearly, though its glow didn't illuminate anything else. Flipping through the options to find the friend chat, Alisea glanced at the time. It read 5:52. Deciding she wouldn't risk waking anyone else, the magess turned away from messaging and instead climbed out of bed to don her armor and cloak.

Walking carefully to the door, Alisea felt out the handle, pulled it open, and peeked out into the hallway. As little light as there was in her room, there was even less in that hall. Casting her mind to the night prior, Alisea stepped out of her room and toward the stairs slowly. As she walked, the magess kept her hand on the wall and counted the doorways she passed. She stopped at the third, crossed to the opposite side, and knocked softly. "Aster," she called quietly, not wishing to wake anyone else.

Though Aster had her share of faults, sloth was not one of them. Even so, six AM was plenty early, and she was still fast asleep at that point. Somehow, she managed to free herself from the foggy tendrils of sleepiness and roll- literally roll- out of her bed, onto the hardwood floor in a tangle of blankets. "Dammit!" she cursed softly, rubbing her hip tenderly, where she'd landed against the floor. Pain suppression was an integral part of the WaveGear, but even so, her ill-concieved idea hadn't rewarded her with a soft landing.

Aster stumbled to the door, eyes still closed in drowsiness, and pulled the door open just a crack. "Alisea. Just... one moment." She patted her sides, and realized she had slept in her cloth armor. She'd apparently been more tired last night than she'd thought. Now that she thought of it, she realized that she didn't actually know how to take off her clothes. That was strange. She'd put them on easily enough earlier. Hmm. It was a worry for another time; Alisea was right there.

"Hey." She stepped out into the hallway, closing the door carefully behind her. "Um. Do you want to head outside? We can probably talk more easily there, without waking up the others." She rubbed at her eyes, finally opening them and tucking her sleep-tousled hair behind her ears.

"Right." Alisea led the way down the stairs and outside into the growing, gray light of dawn. The sun was still some time from being visible; yet the light was spreading quickly, coloring everything in shades of gray. It was a time of morning Alisea loved: the only movement was herself and Aster. Everything else slumbered on. The magess raised each arm overhead, one at a time, and pulled back on it to stretch out her shoulders. Talrae wasn't a bad place to live.

'As long as you live.'

Deciding the cobblestone street was a poor choice, Alisea turned onto the dirt alleyway that led behind the inn. Stopping where the narrow path was widest--maybe eight feet between the inn and what looked like a tavern--Alisea turned back to her partner for the morning. "Have you fought much? Before yesterday, I mean," the magess inquired as she started stretching her legs.

Aster kept up, though not without a bit of effort. She saw that Alisea was going through some preliminary stretches, and decided to mimic them in hopes of limbering herself up a bit for the unfamiliar exercise to come. It felt good to stretch, and she hoped that she was doing the simple exercises properly. It would hardly do to pull a muscle the first time she sparred.

"I... no. I haven't really done anything like that. I've done some dancing, though, if that's worth anything." She trailed off, blushing slightly at the admission. In a world in which survival was dictated in part by combat abilities, she was a dancer and a... well, that was a secret for another day. "I've actually never done very much in terms of active sports and all that. I... wasn't able to, back home. My parents didn't think It'd be safe for me." She looked back up to Alisea and interjected quickly "They were right, honestly. I'm not much of a fighter. But that's why I'm here!" She looked back down at her armor, which, cloth though it was, seemed excessive for the exercise to come. "Actually... do you know how to take off items? I tried this morning, but it's a bit tricky. I'm not really used to gaming mechanics."

"Hmm? Oh, you open your menu and unequip it from the inventory," Alisea explained absently. Her mind was elsewhere. Aster had learned some dancing? "Dancing may be worth more than you realize," the magess commented. "As for myself, I have much more experience on a basketball court than a battlefield. We'll do the best we can with what we have, right? Let's start slow."

In demonstration, the magess stepped forward with her right foot and thrust her right fist toward Aster's chest. She kept her movement slow, restrained, looking to practice her form (and allow Aster the same) more than to actually fight.

Somehow, as the minutes passed and their motions gradually quickened, Alisea felt something... off. She was fairly sure she shouldn't be aware of some of the movements her body was making: catching Aster's thrust and spinning it outward; dropping to her chest whilesweeping with her forward leg; a combination of open-hand slaps and jabs that came just a little too naturally. The magess doubted this was all coming from her own experience and knowledge; but admitting that would imply the game itself was giving her this ability.

It was a question of science and philosophy, and Alisea wasn't going to let it interrupt their sparring match. She pushed the query aside and focused on the movements of both herself and her opponent, Aster. They weren't up to full-speed, but the snail's pace they began at had long since been discarded. Alisea found herself, more and more, needing to devote all her attention to deflecting the next attack and launch an easy counter; if she didn't stay focused, Aster was going to out-do her.

Aster was surprised at how naturally she took to the hand-to-hand practice. For someone who was usually cautious in every motion, she found the reckless abandon of fighting, of simply relying on instinct and whatever engine in the game managed fighting, terribly relaxing.

By the end of their sparring she was sweating, and was grateful that she'd unequipped the armor. Aster raised one hand and skidded backwards a foot or so, calling out "Wait, wait! I yield!" She laughed happily, smiling at her sparring partner. "That was incredible! I've never done anything like that... I mean, fighting the boars was one thing, but this... this was so much fun! I din't know I could move like that!" She stretched, exercise-loosened muscles moving much more freely than they had before the session. "We should probably wrap it up now, though, huh? I mean, we ought to get back to the others. Before we do, though, would you mind accepting a friend request from me? If it's not too sudden, that is."

Alisea blinked several times before words could reclaim a portion of her thoughts. "Oh, of course!" she answered quickly. Slowly the magess straightened up, letting her battle-wariness and some of the adrenaline bleed out. She was happy to accept the invitation as it appeared in front of her; now that the fight had ended Alisea realized she was smiling--genuinely smiling--and had been for some time. Whether it was an endorphin release the size of that sparring match, or a strong wave of dopamine for having accomplished so much during it, she didn't particularly care; the rush was euphoric, and the magess would do it all again in a heartbeat.

But Aster's words were true. As promised the night before, Alisea paid for Aster's bath as well as her own. When they came out again, the morning had begun in earnest.

Alisea still had a small smile on her face. Just remembering the match made her feel warm. "Your blocking was amazing, wasn't it? You did a great job of turning my jabs outward," she was telling Aster as they made their way into the inn's dining area. She didn't stop to scan the entire room--something that surprised herself a little--but her eyes did note an unmistakable head of white hair alone at a table. Reylan was already enjoying his breakfast; and Alisea was glad to know there were more early risers in their party. With a quiet word to Aster and a nod his direction to be sure the swordswoman noticed him, too, Alisea made her way to the table Reylan was seated at.

"Already finished?" she asked the archer, sitting down across from him. Another party member--Karma, another mage--entered, too, but she gave him a simple wave and a smile and left him to his breakfast. "Would you accompany us for some shopping, then, Reylan?"

✧ Talrae ✧ (LOOKING FOR CO-GM)

Welp. There's the pair that already posted IC. @Leaves's Dubstepp is probably sleeping off the guard duty, but everyone else... Do people simply sleep 'late'? (Because anything past dawn is late in Alisea's book)

✧ Talrae ✧ (LOOKING FOR CO-GM)

Still working with @Tybalt Capulet through PM for that morning spar (since it's before 7:00). We'll have it posted IC soon, promise.

After that, who is eating at the inn? And who would like to join (or better yet, invite) Alisea to somewhere else for breakfast?

Worlds Apart

"The answer to that is...yes. The Ghost Girl needs people and isn't picky over who she needs. That is why she gave powers to us, seemingly at random. But that doesn't mean we can trust her. For all we know, she may want us for a cause that would be destructive or against our morals or both. For now, she has all the cards. For now."

That... might make some sense. The Ghost Girl chose so many different people because anybody would do? But something didn't sit right in that idea, either; there was a much stronger feeling inside her chest that told Anni all these strange, distinct individuals had been chosen because of exactly what they could and would do. And if she already had the power to make all of this happen, the Ghost Girl wouldn't really need them to cause destruction, would she?

"You know," Ascot continued, startling Anni out of her thoughts and causing her head to raise until they made eye contact again, "I like girls too. But few of them are so outspoken, yet kind. Assertive, yet gentle. Feminine, yet with steel under that silk." He blushed. "And, well, let's just say that I never noticed those attributes in you before; I am sorry."

Her eyes must have been as wide as saucers. Firstly, this was far more attention than she was used to receiving from a boy; he was staring way too much! Secondly, what was he saying!? What was he thinking? What was he doing? Why was he descending and changing back into the young man she knew from before Irriss?

...Why could she remember that look in his eyes so clearly?

Then he was up again, hair white and wings fluttering. Anni was still half-dazed--until he said, "I will not throw myself at you like I did with Saffron."

With Saffron. Saffron. Saffron.

'Two hours ago he had... to him but... he is there, and now... to me, he would...'

Anni's mind was spinning in circles. She couldn't hear any more of what he was saying. First he had professed to Saffron, but already he was advancing on her? And it was an advance, she knew that; that's what a date meant for sure! This guy, this guy-!

"So, a mini-date in a rose garden, if you, Tristan, and Tabitha agree?" he concluded with a smile so bright it could have been used for a camera's flash.

There was only one answer Anni could give him, but she didn't know how on earth... how on Irriss she was going to say it. Instead, Anni threw up both her hands as a protective shield and cried out, "NothankyouIhavetogobye!" And with that, the small girl darted away. She didn't even pause to consider her direction; she just needed to run. It wasn't until a deep voice tickled her ear that Anni realized she was running within two feet of the scary man. From that close distance he was watching her, telling her something so quietly she barely heard it herself.

A whisper just for her

"Be wild and don't let any rules hold you back."

Anni kept running--she even managed to increase her speed to get away from him. He probably tried to say something more, but she missed it. Too much was happening all at once. Anni bent her tracks toward Kate, reached her, and dove behind her back to hide from everything. That was enough--no, that was too much learning about the others already!

Worlds Apart

" What's ya name, anyway? I ain't know ya. Tabitha's mine, if ya ain't caught it."

"Ah! Anni."

"I'll go ahead and tell ya, I ain't gonna trust whatever reason the next spook is gonna give us for doing whatever it is we gonna do."

That was a stunning idea. Anni took a step back as her brain tried to process it. The next person, the Magician, was one of the Ghost Girl's friends... probably. So the reason he would give them for--well, like Tabitha said, for whatever--wouldn't that be the Ghost Girl's reason?

Just as Anni stepped back, the metal soldier stepped forward. Anni stayed just long enough to hear his name--Tristan; Tabitha, Tristan, Ky-ah, later!--then felt rapidly out of place being so near the two. Their conversation was a private one, so Anni silently slipped away as quickly as she could.

"I would have you serve as my blades, in this world."

So what was her reason? Why did she need a police officer, a pair of high school students, both of Johnny's employees, that guy who was clearly not on their side, and, and... and she didn't know who the rest of these people were, actually. But why did the Ghost Girl need all of them to "serve as her blades?" And why wouldn't the Magician tell them that truthfully?

Anni glanced at the scary man again. Somehow, he had something to do with that answer; Anni was certain of that. She didn't want to be any closer to him than necessary--but as Anni hadn't yet stopped walking, she found herself drifting closer to him subconsciously. With a small, startled yelp, Anni halted her steps--just a few strides away from Officer Kalua... from Mike and Ascot. They were talking about what to do with their prisoner; and, even as wrapped up in her thoughts as she was, Anni had heard enough of the exchange between that man and the officer to know... well, to know something. That it all made her really uncomfortable and she really wanted a dog to hug?

Anni stayed there quietly, unsure how she should insert herself in that conversation--or even if she should at all. A loud growl from Ascot's stomach resolved the situation; he turned to her, pulled her into the conversation, and asked in his very direct and pragmatic fashion, "Oh, do you guys have some food?"

Anni had to confess, "I do not." She swiveled her head this way and that. They were in the wilderness right now, after all; surely there would be some fruits or even roots that were edible. Anni discovered a much bigger problem quickly; she couldn't even find anything that was recognizable. Knowing if it was edible or not simply wasn't possible. She couldn't think of any way to test if a plant might be poisonous, either.

A warm throb came from the folds of her skirt. Anni's hand dropped down to grasp it. Immediately that warmth began to pulse up her arm. What came next wasn't anything tangible--nothing like a clear thought or even something as vague as an emotion. There seemed to appear, ex nihilo, the understanding that putting the mask on would give her the power to help. It didn't enter as a foreign thought; it didn't feel like a thought, and it seemed never to have entered. It was simply there, as though it had always been there.

Anni dared to take a peek at the mask, turning it out with her hand. It smiled at her--it always smiled at her. That impossibly large smile that split the entire face. She dropped it back into her skirt quickly, returning her gaze to her peer and the policeman. "I think you're right, Ascot; we do need to hurry."

For a moment, Anni looked like she was struggling with an internal conflict. "Do you," she began, addressing her words to both or either--she wasn't sure herself. "Do you," she tried again. "Do you believe..." Her words died out as the battle within was lost. Her head tilted down and her eyes sought the soil. "...that the Ghost Girl really needs our help?" she finished in a quiet voice.

She hadn't said it. She had been scared to say it. So she said this. Head still down, Anni dared to turn her eyes up to look at Ascot. Maybe if she had done more to get to know him last year, maybe then she would have asked her real question. Maybe he would have known what she didn't say. Maybe...

'Maybe you should just keep it to yourself, hm?'

Her eyes met Ascot's. Anni looked down again quickly. Maybe that person was right; maybe she should. Maybe then she wouldn't bother any of these people.

'Maybe that's too many maybes.'