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Post by therunawaygirl on Aug 26, 2018 12:04:06 GMT -5
Neku laughed when he heard the trio's unneasiness, while he walked inside. Much like the outside, most of the place was done with wood, but looked solid. Right when they entered, there was a large board with numbers on it, some of them holding a key, and others not.
"This is usually reserved for school students" Neku explained, "But during breaks and holidays, it's open to anyone. Most rooms have one bed, a desk, a few chairs and a small closet, but..." he pointed at numbers multiples of 10, "Some of those have 2 or 3 beds" he finished, looking at the trio.
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Post by Ziya on Aug 26, 2018 12:32:37 GMT -5
Lucia's relief was palpable when the building turned out to be quite well constructed. After listening to Neku's explanation she took one of the multi bed room keys from the board, then turned to him. "Thanks for showing us around today. I hope everything turns out all right with Tori, and if you need anything you know where to find us."
Jennifer sighed when her sister didn't grab another key. "One room again, huh? Well, it beats the ground I guess." Jason just looked between the two before nodding. Discussion tonight, right? We've got to figure out what we're doing next."
Lucia returned Jason's nod before looking over at Conrí. "Do you want a room to yourself, or are you going to stay with us? Either way you need to be there when we talk." She ignored the other two's looks of surprise. They'd understand once everything came out.
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Post by Conrí on Aug 26, 2018 13:43:56 GMT -5
Conrí bowed slightly to Neku. "Yeah, thanks for everything today." Mostly, the wolf boy was just happy that he wasn't upset. He'd told Fenrir before they entered the Shacks to go back to his realm, as to not disturb others or potentially break the rules of the place.
The would be king chuckled slightly at Lucia's sigh of relief, and Jen's annoyance at the single room as an option. Jason, to be expected, wanted to talk, and Lucia had surprised him slightly with her question. He supposed he hadn't given it much thought as to how to handle the sleeping situation. He had to remind himself that this was not like the time with the druids, where sleeping in the same room as the master was either a great honor or a punishment. When she mentioned that he needed to be present when they talked, Conrí bowed in a manner similar to what he had seen Jason do at the Training Grounds earlier.
"As long as you don't mind it, Lucia, I would prefer to stay with the three of you." As he finished speaking, he righted his posture and waited to be led to the room.
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Post by therunawaygirl on Aug 26, 2018 14:03:57 GMT -5
"You guys suit yourself" Neku said, grabbing a pair of keys, "Imma go to my room. Mine's 329, on the second building. Also... You guys cool if I ask to meet tomorrow at downtown? I want you to meet someone" he suggested.
"Well, I'm off" Neku said, stretching a bit, "See ya tomorrow."
He headed forward, up the stairs and towards the second building, to his room. He opened the door, and let himself on his bed. He looked at the ceiling, thinking about Tori, and her decision about leaving for her runs. Things were bad already, and when Jason placed his suggestion of a bet made things worse, pressuring Tori to leave for a week.
"We oughtta explain them before they make the wrong move... Sorry 'bout this, Tori..." he smirked, knowing that she would kill him if she heard his plan, "But this is for the better."
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Post by Ziya on Aug 26, 2018 17:53:54 GMT -5
Lucia nodded in agreement as Jennifer chirped a response. "Yup! We'll be there." Jason just waved idly as he followed the others to their room, which appeared to be 250, though he did tease Conrí a bit while they walked. "Why did you use an apology bow? Guilty conscience?"
Once everyone was inside Lucia summoned her keyblade to lock the door before turning to look at the room. It was a simple thing, with three narrow beds and the same number of chairs arranged around a table. In the right wall was a single sliding door open to reveal a closet.
By the time she caught sight of her sister again she had already stripped of everything above her waist, though she did stop to give Lucia a questioning look once she was caught. "What? If we're gonna stay here we need to wash these." A shrug was Lucia's answer before she too began stripping. Jason just rested his face in the palm of his hand, desperately trying to keep from laughing as he explained to Conrí. "Everyone on our world had to serve in the military of their Clan for at least two years, so none of us have any issues with skin."
Lucia glanced over at Jason in irritation as she hopped about removing one of her boots. "Hey, if you two want your clothes washed get them over here! We'll need your help anyhow Jason, otherwise it makes a mess."
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Post by Conrí on Aug 26, 2018 18:24:00 GMT -5
Conrí immediately blushed when Jason pointed out the bow he had done was one of apology. "Uh, I guess I shouldn't just copy things until I know a bit more about their background. In any case, I did feel bad about sleeping at the guild unaware." The wolf boy realised that there was probably very little need to be so blunt. However, he found himself puzzled by the three bed set up, and wondered if his position as apprentice meant sleeping on the floor. "I call the floor," he said with a wry smirk before very quickly shielding his eyes.
Jason explained how their comfort in their own skin was from military training, and, for a moment, the would be king understood, but also wondered if he would have been more comfortable with the scene before him if he had actually done more of his training. He heard that druid rituals were...intense, to say the least, but, he hadn't gotten that close to graduating to that level.
When Lucia mentioned that they should also wash their clothes, Conrí looked at Jason and gave a solemn nod with a sigh. Hr laid his sword belt on the ground and quickly got undressed, trying not to look or blush or think too hard about what was taking place. He quickly covered in his druid robes and felt better, even though he wanted to pull his hood over his head like Tori had been doing earlier. Rule one, you do what the master asks of the apprentice, so long as it's not in harm to yourself or others...it really can't be helped.
Absentmindedly, he thought of Lugus again while he was keeping his eyes closed, and, suddenly, the blade took weight in his hand. "Oops," he muttered to himself.
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Post by therunawaygirl on Aug 27, 2018 6:46:31 GMT -5
While the group headed back in town, Tori had made her way out of it, towards a path only she knew. While people saw her, no one stopped her, making things easy for her to leave. In the dark of the night, Tori managed to quickly run away from the town, like the many times she'd done before, towards the Souther Shore, which is considered the most dangerous shore in the island, but it was the safest place for her. After all, no one would come across her as long as she remained there.
Close to the sea, there was a small tent made with leaves and sticks, yet durable. It camouflaged well with the environment, making it the perfect hiding spot. Sighing, Tori laid down on the ground, looking at the starry sky.
"Geesh... Not only he's up to his stuff again... That Jason guy is onto me. Guess he just caught one or two posters..." she sighed, "Why now...?" she asked, groaning.
Another groan replied, causing Tori to shut her mouth. Like usual, beasts woke up at night, and the shorelines were the only places open to danger. She shuddered, smirking silently, as she heard the growls and sounds of the sea and forest. As long as she laid down, she wouldn't get hurt.
"For now... Until they either stop looking for me, or they help me out with hiding... I'll stay here..." she determined in thought, laying back down, and trying to fall asleep.
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Post by Ziya on Aug 27, 2018 13:21:30 GMT -5
Sunlight streaming through the window woke Lucia the next morning. Blinking slowly she sat up in her bed, looking around to find that Jason had already been up and about for a while. Their clean clothes had been folded, and his bedroll was nowhere to be seen as he sat at the table eating a ration bar in his usual clothes. "Morning Lucia. Sleep well?" Her only reply was a grunt as she got out of the bed and untangled her hair with a brush. "Still as talkative as ever in the mornings. Wish we had some coffee."
A few minutes later Lucia was back in her outfit and coherent enough to notice her sister still sleeping. A crafty smirk grew as she crept closer to the bed, summoning two shards of ice as she approached. Jennifer mumbled in her sleep, something about Riley, but once Lucia had the ice go down her shirt and pants she immediately woke up shrieking. Lucia and Jason both fell over laughing as Jennifer tried to get the ice out, quickly stripping before glaring at the two. "Honestly, what the hell?! You could have just woken me up!"
Lucia recovered form her laughing fit as her sister got dressed in yesterday's outfit. "That's for barging in on Seamus and me last week. Now we're even" Jennifer didn't stay mad for long; they did things like this to each other all the time. "Fair enough. Let's get everything packed up and head toward Downtown then."
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Post by Conrí on Aug 27, 2018 15:20:31 GMT -5
Conrí was awake for a while into the night, because he forgot what it was like to sleep on a proper bed actually surrounded by friends. He looked at Jason on his bedroll, and his stomach dropped. But, I called the floor...besides...I'm not used to this equality thing yet. If only he had actually finished his training, then, he would probably be more used to it. Would be king or not, he had to work his way from the bottom to claim his birthright.
The wolf boy managed to get some sleep, but, was still awake with Jason out of a habit of keeping himself partially alert. He heard Jason moving around a bit, and decided to sit up. He moved from the bed to the table where Jason was and yawned a little. "Morning." Conrí realised that he sounded tired, but, quickly forgot about it when Jason shoved a ration bar his way.
"Might as well eat."
The wolf boy nodded with a slight smile. "I could have slept on the floor. Really, I wouldn't have minded."
Jason smirked a little and guided the would be king to look at Lucia. With chagrin, Conrí turned just in time to see the ice hovering over Jen fall. He laughed a little, though tried to hide it with his hand. "Morning, princess," he whispered as a joke.
Jen suggested they go to downtown, and the wolf boy rose, retrieved Claiomh and his normal clothing, which he quickly put on and stood at attention. "Ready when you are. I hope Neku slept well." I hope Tori's okay, too.
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Post by therunawaygirl on Aug 27, 2018 15:53:31 GMT -5
Neku had woken up early, as soon as the sun rised. He took a quick shower, dressed up, and headed out to downtown, waiting for the others to arrive. While he was there, he was met with someone very familiar to him, and couldn't avoid groaning as he saw him approach.
"Where is she?" the man asked, sterly. "Two things, old man" Neku replied, bitter, "One: who are you talking about, and two: why do you ask me." "Stop the charade. You know who I'm talking about." "No, I actually don't." "..." the man let out an irritated sigh, and grabbed Neku by the collar, "Don't play dumb, kid. Speak up, now." "Heh... Try me" Neku smirked back, "You can't do much here, remember? Less killing someone unrelated to your Hunt." "I don't mind. And, even if I didn't kill you, I'll just leave you scared for life." "Again, try me. I doubt you can outsmart the hell I've been living with, anyways."
The man simply tossed Neku against the floor, and Neku fell on his back. Thankfully, he didn't hurt his head, yet the push still stung. A sharp metal sound forced Neku to look up, seeing the man with the gun in his hand, looking at it with a cold glare.
"If you won't tell me where she is, then maybe your friends will" he determined, and then glared at Neku, "Wouldn't they?" "I wouldn't throw away my chances" Neku warned, "They're completely out of your league." "Hmph... Speak for yourself."
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Post by Ziya on Aug 27, 2018 16:15:46 GMT -5
Jennifer heard Conrí as she finished putting her jacket on, crossing her arms in a mock huff once she could. "Hey, I'm a queen, not a princess. At least get it right." She finished by sticking her tongue out at him before shoving the emergency bag back through the Corridor Lucia had made.
All three laughed as they left the room, making small talk and sharing jokes through the building and down the street. Most of them were inside jokes, but they tried to make sure Conrí wasn't left out. As they approached Downtown Lucia started keeping watch for Neku, but in the end it was Jason that saw him. "There he is. Looks like he's got company too."
Lucia followed his finger across the way, only to see what she was pretty sure was the same person from the weapon smith the previous day. "Great, looks like trouble. Conrí, I know you don't want to but stay behind us. we can heal if we get shot, but you'd have to rely on our healing magic."
With that, the trio walked toward Neku, Lucia in the lead with Jennifer and Jason half a step behind on either side. None of them summoned their armor or activated their weapons yet, just in case they could save themselves a fight.
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Post by Conrí on Aug 27, 2018 16:59:25 GMT -5
The wolf boy's jaw dropped when Jen mentioned she was a queen. He nearly bowed and kowtowed at this information. The trio left the room laughing and joking, and, for once Conrí was able to join in and feel like he was part of a pack again. It was a strange feeling that came over him again.
Conrí looked around. Despite the crowd, the man was dumb enough to pull a gun, and, on his friend. Right as his body tensed to carry him forward, Lucia told him to stay back. He tsked his tongue and nodded. The would be king fought the urge to just summon his arsenal and throw it at this ass hole. "I know it's him. I'd never forget that nasty scent," he muttered to Lucia. Also, from the look in his eyes, he wants a fight. Fen, be at the ready, but don't come out just yet. He really didn't like staying behind with such a threat, but, he knew that Lucia was right. He didn't have the magic or means to heal himself against that kind of wound.
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Post by therunawaygirl on Aug 27, 2018 19:19:07 GMT -5
The man saw the group approaching, and smirked, leaving Neku alone. However, Neku wasn't done dealing with the man just yet. Standing up, he stepped in front of him, making him unable to aproach them.
"They have nothing to do with all this, dammit!" Neku shouted, "And if they did, they have a right to stay silent!" "..." the man simply tossed Neku aside, and looked at Lucia headfirst, gun in hand, "Have you seen her?" he asked. He then looked at the group, "I know you have seen her. Hiding it from me will only delay the inevitable. So talk. Now. Before I pull the trigger on one of you" he added, menacing, pointing at Neku, and then Jen, then Jason, then Conrí and finally Lucia. "Killing innocents will only screw you up, you know!" Neku said, "There's a whole crowd, lookin' at us right now. They won't hesitate to kill you next." "And does it look like I care if they try to kill me?" the man spat back.
In fact, a whole crowd had gathered around them, and all had a frown towards the man, making some sharp and dark remarks about his authority. After a while, the man saved his gun, and walked away.
"...I will find her" he said, "And then... You'll be next in the list, kid" he glared at Neku. "I wanna see you try and pin a crime I've never done on me. I really want to see you freaking trying, old man!" Neku yelled at him back.
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Post by Ziya on Aug 27, 2018 19:56:07 GMT -5
The instant the man began waving the gun around the all three called their armor to them. Lucia's full plate was the only one that could be considered fully bulletproof, but Jennifer and Jason's both had enough protection to prevent any instantly fatal shots. They still left their weapons alone, but with the armor came a very drastic change in behavior.
Jennifer became even more quiet than during the fight with Neku, while Jason tightened like a spring, ready to act at the slightest moment. But Lucia was the greatest change. Until now she had been mostly polite and easy-going, seemingly no significant threat at all. But this man's attitude and threats had only served to anger her, and now she allowed her aura to flare with malice and determination any trained warrior could sense.
All of that was for nothing when the man walked away, allowing them to relax a little. Lucia reigned in her aura once more as all three released their aura, but for an instant as her eyes came into view there was a violet glow to them before they returned to normal. Her voice, while calm, hid a note of hardness as she turned to Neku, as if it were steel covered in silk. "I have a very strong feeling that one of us is going to kill him if he keeps this up. I'd like some answers, and you have my oath that I will not betray you or her in any way, unless you attempt to attack us." Jennifer and Jason both nodded in agreement as they stared at Neku, hoping for a reason.
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Post by Conrí on Aug 28, 2018 7:18:20 GMT -5
As the psycho pointed his gun at Conrí, the wolf boy grit his teeth and was really tempted to draw his own weapons. A lot of innocents could be hurt or worse in this situation. Neku pointed this out, and, the would be king twitched when he saw that the man had caused Lucia and the others to summon their armor. He waited to see what they would do, but, he glared at the man.
Conrí growled and said very clearly, "Ná bí dána." He knew telling the jerk not to be bold, as though he was a child, or that he was somehow related to Conrí's pack was dangerous, but, the guy obviously brushed the language, even if he had heard it, off and walked away. The tension in his body eased, and the would be king walked up to join the others. "We wouldn't betray friends, so, please, tell us about Tori, or whatever you know that would be helpful. That arse has what's coming to him by now."
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Post by therunawaygirl on Aug 28, 2018 12:11:57 GMT -5
Neku groaned as he stood up, stretching his shoulder a bit. He definitely didn't saw that one coming...
"There's a reason why I asked y'all to meet me here, right?" he stated, glaring at the trio, "Start to think for a sec the reason why he's onto you lot. Haa..." he sighed, letting out some stress, "Come on, let's get going. This way."
He nudged the group to follow him up the streets. As they came close to a hill, Neku kept his view on track, making sure that he wouldn't lose himself there. It was rare to see him there, walking around.
"The person I want you guys to meet lives here, in the richer spots" he said, smirking, "It has its beneifts, though. Such as no Stalkers listening in on our conversation."
He headed towards a white, two-floor house, and knocked on the door, waiting for someone to answer.
"Coming!" a female voice replied in the other side of the door.
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Post by Ziya on Aug 28, 2018 12:53:12 GMT -5
As they followed Neku Jennifer was the first to fully return to her usual state, quickly followed by Jason. Lucia had a harder time with herself, having almost given in to her anger during the confrontation. She did manage to remain civil as they walked though.
It hadn't been that hard to restrain herself since before she got Requiem's Resolve, something that worried her a little. She wasn't worried about hurting any of her friends or family, but if she got into a fight in that state she probably wouldn't be holding back either.
She really didn't want that to happen anywhere near town.
The walk slowly eased her mood, and finally she was back to normal as well by the time they neared the house. It seemed unassuming enough, but at this point she wasn't about to trust anything at face value.
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Post by Conrí on Aug 28, 2018 14:43:38 GMT -5
Conrí exhaled loudly as the insane pressure he felt radiating from Lucia fade, and ran to catch up with her. Jen and Jason seemed to be back to their normal selves, but, the wolf boy sensed that something was getting at his Master. He held out his hand, and Lugus appeared. "I know there's no threat here, but, he's needed for a visual demonstration."
He barely noticed that the scenery around them had changed. "I said once that this was my world's deity of light. Whatever you would have done had a fight broken out would have been for the sake of protecting that light." Conrí allowed Lugus to disappear, and tried to put his feelings into words a bit better.
"I follow Lugus's light," he found himself saying rather earnestly, "So, whenever you feel like whatever it is is about to take over, even if it's for my sake, I'll be the pinprick of light guiding you back. Whether you're my Master or not, I've made up my mind about that. You're a part of my pack now."
Conrí stopped talking as they neared an impressive house, and he heard a female's voice. He thought he put two and two together, so he decided to ask, "Neku, is this Mei's house?"
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Post by therunawaygirl on Aug 28, 2018 15:44:43 GMT -5
Neku flinched, turning red at Conrí's guess. Just then, the door opened, and a girl with red hair peeked through the hole. She smiled as she saw Neku, and chuckled a bit at his blush.
"Fancy seeing you here!" the girl said, chuckling, "What's the sudden visit about?" "...Heya, Mei" Neku simply replied, "Well... Stuff happened. And Tori's on a run away." "So you're here basically because you don't have much to do, huh?" the girl asked, amused. She then noticed the group behind Neku, and looked surprised, "Are they... with you?" "Yeah. Friends of mine... Kinda... Dunno how to put it." "...Ah!" the girl seemed to notice something, "P-Please, do come in!" she said, opening the door. "'Scuse us..."
As the girl opened the door, she smiled to the group, and stepped aside for them to enter. Neku excused himself before entering, and sat on the living room right after the main door, waiting for the rest to do the same.
The house was simple yet comfortable. The kitchen was right besides the living room, and a few ways contrary to the main door, stairs led to a second floor, which the girl -Mei- asked to not go to for the time being. She headed to the kitchen to look for something before joining the rest.
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Post by Ziya on Aug 28, 2018 16:13:03 GMT -5
Lucia gave Conrí a gentle smile as he tried to reassure her. "Don't worry about that Conrí. I'm not worried about something taking over, I just have some bad memories of fights with civilians around. My skills don't lend themselves well to fighting near things I don't want to destroy."
Even Jennifer hadn't thought to connect the house and voice with Neku's Mei, but that was indeed the case as the three followed his lead and excused themselves before entering the living room. Jason chose to lean against a wall instead of sitting like the other two, speaking up once everyone was there. "I know I'm the last one here to be saying this, but I hope that by the end of this you actually can consider us friends. All we want to do is help."
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