[center][img]https://www.dropbox.com/s/6eaav3iwbd09bw5/Iksander.png?raw=1[/img]
⊰ LOCATION　♛　TANZAKU CITY CENTER　　　　INTERACTING WITH　♛　ALEXANDER, LUCAS, TSUKI, MITSURU ⊱
[@Achronum][@January][@Trainerblue192][@banjoanjo][/center]
[indent]“[color=#c6c8cd]Xander, you just got back...you’re leaving already?[/color]”

Damn, caught sneaking out. 

“[color=#b5af4b]Yeah, I said I’d help a friend with work. I dunno if I’ll be back tonight,[/color]” Iksander claimed after a masterfully placed yawn. Srebrenka was perceptive, he reminded himself, and though he’d been careful to cover his tracks, the boy knew she’d never fully believed the stories he wove. Judging from the way the girl was peering at him from behind the silvery strands of hair swept in her face, she didn’t believe him then either. Still, no better way to sell a lie than to keep going with it when there was doubt about it. Giving a helpless shrug, Iksander gave the smaller girl a ruffle of the hair with an uncharacteristic softness. “[color=#b5af4b]Don’t wait up for me, Shorty. You gotta get more sleep if you wanna get taller.[/color]”

“[color=#c6c8cd]Fine…[/color]” The note of dejection was not lost on the Prince. He made a mental note to make it up to her by taking her out for crepes after she finished cram school the next day, but covered the guilt by holding his smile steady. 

“[color=#b5af4b]Good, I’ll see you tomorrow, Branka.[/color]” Without waiting for a response that might hold him for longer, the boy crammed his feet into a pair of sneakers, stepping on the backs in his haste, and swept out the door. Perhaps it was because they were twins, but he knew that getting one too many sad looks from Srebrenka would have him caving like wet tissue paper. 

[hr]
Iksander groaned as he bolted down the less crowded streets, taking detours from his usual patrol route and wondering [i]why[/i] he had allowed himself to get roped into extra cleaning duties. Most nights, he was already well into his routine before cram schools let out, but noooo, not that night. Though he should have clattered noisily along with his armor, the Prince of Valor darted through the backstreets of buildings like a shadow--an oddity that came with being filled with magical prowess that he was [i]still[/i] not used to. 

“[color=#b4af4b]Plenty of action out and about tonight, I guess…[/color]” Iksander muttered under his breath while glancing at his surroundings. If he wasn’t wrong--and it was getting much less common for him to be wrong after three years of kicking Shadow ass--then just beyond the next building, there would be plenty of work for him to handle. People to meet, Shadows to kill...fun times for all. 

[i]’[color=#b4af4b]I bet I can make the jump over this building if I try. Might be better for the element of surprise.[/color]’[/i] And more fun. Definitely more fun than just running [i]around[/i] a building. A quick look told Iksander that it would take more than one extra boost upwards for him to clear the height, even accounting for significantly higher physical performance. The boy picked up speed, calling on his favored method of attack a few meters from the side of the building. It took three of the four blades he’d conjured acting as stepping stones (and propulsion thanks to the quick blasts) for him to clear the top. Good, he was still getting a little better at judging his own strength. 

It was unfortunate that luck was not on Iksander’s side that day. 

[i]’[color=#b4af4b]Are you kidding me?! Welp. This will suck for someone.[/color]’[/i] And indeed it would because there was a platform directly in his path to the ground. Directly. In. His. Path. With people on it. Maybe he should have just gone around the damn building.

“[color=#b4af4b]Look out below![/color]” As if that warning was any help when someone in armor was hurtling towards the standing ground. With four people on one platform, and none of them in armor that would prevent an unpleasant collision of metal and soft flesh, the Prince of Valor had to come up with a plan, and fast. Thinking on his feet (or...off them, he supposed), the brunette conjured a blade of condensed light beneath his feet, landing on the flat of the blade. The resulting burst slowed his fall enough to allow for some less-than-graceful mid-air lurching, which resulted in Iksander crashing at one edge of the platform, shoulder driving into it. The impact quickly turned to a roll thanks to the boy’s athletic sensibilities...which unfortunately didn’t help his initial goal of not hitting anyone on the platform.

There was a collision. Thankfully not at terminal velocity, but with Iksander being a hefty 178 cm and sporting metal plates for protection...well, needless to say, the force would have been enough to knock most off balance, but certainly not a--[i]’[color=#b4af4b]...he’s gone. He fell. Son of a crap.[/color]’[/i] One look down. Casual clothes. He wasn’t even a Prince. 

“[color=#b4af4b]...crap. So [i]that’s[/i] why this platform was up here. Well, I got this.[/color]” Iksander glanced at the others present on the platform, and gave a small salute. “[color=#b4af4b]Sorry ‘bout that. Shoulda done that look before ya leap thing.[/color]” Following those words, Iksander promptly threw himself off the platform to perform Operation: Don’t Let the Civilian Die. Fun times for all, really.[/indent]