[b][url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X6RSEGXQZ3c]“Dandan hyaku naru…”[/url][/b] School was finished for the day, and, like every day, Yuuki felt like she didn’t learn much at all. It probably didn’t help that she had zoned out during most of the classes, and now that she had also gotten kicked out of the Purple Crown Orchestra due to her abysmal grades from last year…well, the plain-faced girl really didn’t have much of anything to do. Her friends were busy with some Deep Ground thing, and she didn’t feel like losing herself to the piano that day. Of course, there was also the option of actually studying and staying ahead of her classes this time...but that involved actually studying, so it clearly wasn’t an option. Taking in a deep breath of the autumn breeze, tinged with the smell of maple leaves, Yuuki closed her eyes and hummed a happy little tune as she started walking away from the Academy, heading to the city. With a good pace, she should be able to get to the train station in half an hour, and after that, it’d be another hour or two until she could reach the coastline. By then, the sun should be setting, and she’d get a pretty sunset view by the beach. Of course, it brought up the question of what she was going to eat for dinner if she had little to no time to cook after heading back home...but convenience stores are the sliced bread of the modern era, and the brunette was glad for those one-story miracles. Before she could truly get started on her afternoon excursion, though, a bit of news entered her ears, and, for once, didn’t exit out of her other ear. The Black King, the Moon Rider of the Ebony Strykers, had finally opened up her territories. It was news that was spiralling out of control on the interwebs, as tons of players spammed it in their Twitter feed, with proclamations of taking her head or joining her legion or whatever else. For a moment there, with her phone buzzing like mad at all the updates, Yuuki could only watch. Then, she turned off her phone and brought out her trusty Canadian loonie. [b]“Heads for Black Territory exploration, Tails of Beachside Sunset.”[/b] A flick, a ring, and then a bounce. The whum-whum sound increased in frequency as the coin hopped around on the pavement, before it finally clattered to a stop. Bending downwards to pick it up once more, she sighed at the result. Looked like she would have to find a bench or something to sit down on now. Ten more minutes of aimless wandering passed, before she found herself a nice spot in Purple Crown Academy’s botanic gardens, sat herself down amongst the dead trees and the wilted flowers, and closed her eyes. [center] [b]<> <> <<3>> <<2>> <<1>> [h3]<>[/h3][/b] [/center] A familiar weight could be felt on her back, as nigh-inaudible mechanical whirrings pushed the petite girl upright. She found herself in a Player Sanctuary, and nodded. Good. That made sense. The last time she played, she had gotten herself killed by a band of Outlaws. Looked like everything was alright with the world then. Not bothering to check her EXP or anything else, the black-robed girl stretched out her arms, the long sleeves falling down to reveal slender, pale skin and delicate fingers. The fingers of a proper pianist, so unlike the ones she had in real life. Yuuki smiled softly at this. She always did like her Avatar’s hands, as well as the strawberry blonde hair that was cut at the same length as her own, but was so much more sleek and chic. Another smile. That rhymed. A catchy song popped up in her head once more and, taking nice, bouncing strides, she popped out of the Sanctuary with a happy grin at the rest of the virtual world. Today was going to be a day of exploration! Of discovery! Of going to a place where her Avatar’s color wouldn’t make her stick out like Black Rock Shooter amongst Power Rangers! And, naturally, she’d have to pay the Moon Rider a visit first, just so she doesn’t get shot down for appearing to be a spy or a snoop. The Heavy Arms crackled and whirred once more, before they pressed themselves against the ground and pushed off, sending her flying through the air, over the heads of all those other land-bound Avatars. With the wind whipping by her face and the sky looking so perfectly unobstructed, Yuuki smiled again, softly. It’s been some time since she had seen this type of scenery, and it wasn’t that bad at all. Twenty more minutes of hopping about, and she finally reached the territory of the Black King, a dark land full of tall office buildings made of glass. Yuuki, unfortunately, didn’t register the meaning of ‘glass’ until one of her Heavy Arms literally broke through the window while she tried to launch herself off it. With a great crash and a greater smash, the little girl with really big arms fell down the side of the building before smashing the ground in a sickening crunch. It was most likely only due to her body being cradled by her Arms that she hadn’t turned into a pixelated mess, but…as Yuuki looked back up to the ruined windows on the building, she smiled. [b]“That was fun!”[/b] That ‘fun’ also cost her roughly 35% of her HP, but such details could be ignored for the sake of temporary amusement.