Sanguine Rose

Winter's Blade: A Fairy Tail RP

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_{@j8cob
@pkken
@Raijinslayer}

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A shiver ran up Ria's spine when she finally gave herself a moment to focus on her surroundings. It had nothing to do with the cold and everything to do with how eerily empty the bay was. She didn't like it one bit. The bay, the sea, the ocean were supposed to be more lively than this. Even for a bit of fishing trouble, she expected to see more than just Bessie. She shook the thought from her head as she propelled onward.

She dove a bit deeper, circling wide to keep Bessie fully in her sights. Big as Bessie was, she wasn't about to assume the beast couldn't maneuver fast. There were plenty of creatures that were large and seemingly slow, but could move when they wanted to. Her head tilted slightly as she observed Bessie for a long moment. The more she watched the creature before her, the more she was reminded of swimming with Cormenila. She had to shake her head to refocus.

All right. Let's get you out of here. The dragon slayer stopped, treading water where she was, before finally summoning a current and pushing it toward Bessie to get the beast's attention. She would only wait long enough to figure out if it worked before taking off further out to sea - should Big Bessie respond to the prod.

Red in Tooth and Claw [Jurassic World meets The Walking Dead]

Alright. I'll be the first to say it.

I'm interested.

Winter's Blade: A Fairy Tail RP

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_{@j8cob
@pkken
@Raijinslayer}

---

There was a half moment of hesitation, a moment that Ria debated going over and casting one of her restorative spells on Kaito, when she saw him collapse. She figured it was going to happen; she should have just done it when she was right beside him. But Cade seemed to have things well in hand. Chewing lightly on the inside of her cheek, she shook the thought from her head. Cade wouldn't let someone die. He'd get someone to help if Kaito is in real trouble.

Her attention turned to the one-eyed (as far as she knew) mage. The concern and indecision vanished as she nodded. Her usual smile spread back on her face. "Don't be overeager and hurt her unless she is about to hurt one of us, please." She turned, but stopped and looked over her shoulder at Cade once more. "I'm counting on you to give signal if she's getting out of control. I don't want any more of my friends dropping off the barrier; I'll take it over if it starts to drop." She knew the spell from before she even moved here, they'd needed it from her before, but she had other barriers in mind. Stronger ones that relied on the force a dragon slayer could wield.

The dragon slayer turned back to the sea, taking stock of the next wave to crash against the barrier simply from Big Bessie moving beneath the waves. She's just a giant lizard. Not even a dragon. This will be easy. She's just lost. Time to help her find her way out of here. Setting her feet like a sprinter, she ran for the edge and dove into the water. Her skin shimmered like light against water as she used the water around her to propel herself; she knew the water was frigid, hypothermia inducing, but her spell held both the cold and its dangers at bay.

Ask an Admin, v2.

Hey, @Ruby, I know you get a lot of public heat and stuff, and that could scare off a lot of people from wanting to be mods themselves. It kinda lead me to wonder: what's your favorite thing about being a mod? (I know the rules say to address only you, but I'd be interested to hear responses from any mod that wants to share, honestly.)

Site Mod Selection

I'll be upfront right now and say I hadn't looked into the application process for being a mod and what you might have already put forward to get your 16 canadits, but I did have some general ideas because I've run mod-selection for a group I was a mod for before I left that site.

Some of the things we've done were a lot of hypotheticals. Like:

A user is being confrontational with you over (insert reason.) How would you handle the situation: A) if it is being done in public, B) if it is being done via PM/DM?

A user has raised a complaint about another user over (insert reason.) What do you believe the proper course of action should be?

(@Hyde already nailed the "previous experience" question. lol.)
But, to build on that, perhaps just a more generalized: Do you have any experience in de-escalating arguments/problems, or enforcing rules/policies?
(It's complicated to address this question, but people that have experience working as customer service reps, or management positions, or even as parents and teachers would have experience there that they may not attribute to having been a modorator elsewhere.)

Winter's Blade: A Fairy Tail RP

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_{@j8cob
@pkken
@Raijinslayer}

---

Seeing the beast rise out of the water trying to get something, Ria smirked a little. This is going to be fun. Bessie was about the same size as Cormenila. She loved chances to spar with him. This was just going to be less fighting, and more tag. "Just like a game of tag," she muttered to herself with a nod. Fun.

Her attention turned back to Will when he offered her the magical ring. Her eyes lit up, smirk turning an excited grin. "Oh, wow! This is so cool!" She took it and slid it onto the pinkie of her offhand. If she did need to throw a punch while dealing with Bessie, she didn't want to make it hurt more from the ring, or break the ring in the process. That would kind of ruin the point. She held up her hand to both watch it adjust to size and admire it. "So awesome."

She looked over at Cade when he joked about needing one. She laughed. "I thought you were supposed to be keeping an eye on us." The smile left her face as she realized he was helping one of the barrier mages off the boat. She jogged over to help the mage off his boat. Surely that was why Cade was here too.

"Hey, Kaito. Bessie isn't leaving as fast as I was told she would, huh? We're going to get her on her way." She offered the mage a smile. "You shouldn't have to go back out again to deal with her tidal waves. So rest up and relax, 'kay?" She waved as she walked toward the far end of the dock. "Right, guys, are you ready? Time to dive right in, right?" She laughed at her own pun.

Winter's Blade: A Fairy Tail RP

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_{@j8cob
@pkken
@Raijinslayer}

---

Yes, it certainly did sound like they had a plan. Ria’s problem wasn’t just coming up with a plan, it was sticking to it. If they had a communication lacrima so Cade could keep watch from the shore and tell Will and maybe she’d hear it one of the times she surfaced. She was pretty sure she wasn’t going to be staying under the entire time, but she certainly wasn’t going to be able to hold onto a communication lacrima and deal with Bessie.

The blast of frigid air that proceeded their guildmaster’s grand entrance hit like a punch in the chest. She could stand outside without her spell cast for a decent amount of time in what she was wearing before she’d really feel the chill, but that was the natural environment. The Ice-Maker magic Aiden used put White Harbor’s frigid gusts to shame. A shiver ran down her spine, but a smile spread on Ria’s face all the same watching the display of his maker-magic.

“Okay, let’s go,” she laughed as Serena broke the news to Aiden - that the interview was off. They had more important things to do than delay starting their job. “As you said before, the sooner we start - the sooner we might be able to finish and get something to eat.”

Ria didn’t mind the questioning - and sometimes criticizing - glances she got walking down to the docks. She was used to the judgemental looks when she headed out for a swim. The cold didn’t bother her until the spell wore off, and generally by then she was already on her way back to the guildhall. That’s what she figured would happen again this time. She never really timed how long it took for her spell to wear off, but she figured they had plenty of time, especially since she was going to be out in her element.

“So, Cade, you’re staying on the docks, right? I’ll be counting on you to help try to keep an eye on how things are going. I know the split between the bay and deeper waters below water, but I won’t be able to tell how far I’m getting her out if we stay close to the surface. Will, if you’re coming out with me, did you already secure a boat?” She looked at him. “Or were you planning on swimming too?”

Unconventional Attraction [Sanguine Rose & Vornal]

The water set to heat, Steve offered her an apologetic smile. “Sorry about that. I didn’t mean to startle you.” He turned his attention to the cabinets as he opened one and fetched down a set of coffee mugs. “Truth be told, I forgot who you were for a second.”

Setting them on the counter, he turned back to her. His hands folded behind his lower back as he leaned against the counter. It shortened the shrug he had to go with his response to her question. “I got a call from one of the night shift IT guys at work. He was having trouble with his system and needed upper level support.” He chuckled softly. “So while he’s all set to work the rest of the night, now I get to try to shut my brain down again.”

It was weird to think that before yesterday they’d pretty much only said, like, ‘hi’ and maybe a polite ‘bye’. Weird, but he didn’t feel awkward about it. If he were more awake, he figured maybe. But then that’d make the whole thing more awkward, and...

He chuckled softly when he realized he was starting to overthink it. “Sorry, it’s just - it just occurred to me that we barely spoke before yesterday. Now the bulk of us talking has been while I’m half asleep.” It was probably better this way, though. Half-asleep meant his brain wasn’t awake enough for him to be self-conscious about how the interaction was going - not because she was a girl or his friend’s sister or anything like that but just the simple fact she was a person he was talking to in a non-work setting. Even office parties were nerve wracking for him, and most of those people he interacted with on a daily basis.

His attention turned to the pot when he saw it start steaming. Turning the burner off and moving the pot to a different spot, he popped open the lid and tapped in some of the leaves. “It just needs to steep for a few minutes,” he said as he put the tin away. “I don’t know if you’ve tried this blend before, but it’s a blend of tea leaves, some herbs and flowers, and some fruit peels. It’s light and sweet by itself in my opinion, but I can take out the sugar or honey if you like to sweeten your tea with either.”

Winter's Blade: A Fairy Tail RP

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_{@j8cob
@pkken
@Raijinslayer}

---

Ria was up for leaving to discuss the plan on the way when Cade offered up his opinion. She figured he was ready to leave, but he’d accepted the drink Serena was offering. No harm in waiting a few more minutes. It wasn’t like Bessie hadn’t been living there for a few weeks. Another few minutes wouldn’t hurt if it meant having more of a plan before getting to the shore.

She hadn’t thought of hurting the poor thing. It wasn’t Bessie’s fault she was in the bay. It was where the food was, and she could fit. Her mama went to deeper waters, and she went closer to the shore. Her cheerful look soured at the suggestion they turn her into a fillet. “We don’t need to hurt her to get her to leave,” she said, dead certain.

“In the end, we’re all animals - predators even. I was taught most things respond best to a firm but gentle hand. You go in there aiming to hurt, a predator is going to push back. Prey learn to run, predators learn to attack. We go trying to bully her out, she'll fight to keep her territory. That’s instinct." Drawing in a small breath, she closed her eyes for a second before opening them and bringing back a bit of her cheerful tone and smile. “Bessie and I aren’t much different in what we learned to survive. Means we’re better off trying to go easy, nice. She came in the bay looking for food, and she’s staying ‘cause it’s here and hasn't moved on. We just need to show her there’s more elsewhere. She's just overstayed her welcome this year is all.

"But...If you're looking for an early lunch, you're welcome to stay here, and Will and I can handle her. We'll just split it between us." She grinned teasingly as she motioned between her and Will. "I took the job because it's something I know. I asked you guys to help because I like hanging with you. But something else I've been taught is you can't rush a job or it just leaves a mess to fix. If it takes a few hours to get her moving, then that's what it takes." She didn't think it would take longer than that, though. In her head the job was simpler than Serena made it sound, and didn't need to involve hurting Bessie like Cade suggested. Piece of cake.

She turned to head for the door before stopping with a foot half raised to walk. A brighter, but somewhat sheepish grin spread on her face before she laughed and rubbed the back of her head. She turned back to her companions. "Oh yeah. I almost forgot. Can't go out like this." She set her feet and made the motions with her hands to summon up the right spell. Magic circles appeared under the three of them, then she finished the motions and thrust her hands above her head. "Resilience!" Both the boys would feel less cold - granted an immunity to the chill environment - and perhaps feel a bit of a bolster to their magical energy. Ria never felt the effects of the last bit, but it certainly wasn't the first time anyone would have seen her cast that spell before taking a dip into the harbor.

"Okay. Now we're ready! Let's go!"

Winter's Blade: A Fairy Tail RP

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_{@j8cob
@pkken
@Raijinslayer}

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Ria backed up a step when the older dragonslayer woke up with a start. She tried to not laugh, but the squashed bit of amusement still painted on her face with a smile. It wasn't so much that he'd been startled, but the paper stuck to his face that she wanted to laugh at. "Yup, just little me. Didn't mean to startle you." She did let out a quick laugh at his comment about making himself presentable though. "Yeah, you may want to wash the ink stain off your face. Right...there," she said as she motioned to the bit that had imprinted onto his face. Her smile brightened a hair as she put her hand up and headed for the door. "I'll be sure to let her know."

Closing the door behind her to leave the guildmaster his privacy again, she jogged back off toward the main room to meet up with her team again. Serena was offering up a drink, but hey - what was a few more minutes? She still needed Will to brainstorm up a plan. "Great! Now the whole team is here! We just need to figure out how we're going to go about this. Serena didn't seem to think it was a good idea for me to just jump in the water and deal with her - and I hadn't even told her that was my first plan," she said with a pouty look toward the mage behind the counter. Of course, Serena was a wizard and psychic (it clearly had nothing to do with the fact it was a pretty standard dragon slayer tactic that the woman was well versed in by now) so she always could predict Ria's plans. It wasn't going to put her off from trying to brainstorm more. The ensuing headache from that act would.

"Oh! And Serena," she started as she turned her attention to the woman. "Master Aiden said he would be out once he made himself presentable."

Just like that, her attention focused back on her companions. "So yeah. I still think the easiest way is for me to just lure Bessie out of the bay and figure out some way to intensify - " she paused, looking at the ground as she tried to figure out the right word she wanted there. It was a pretty smart sounding word... "Intigrate...En-centralize...Ugh." She sighed, shaking her head before looking back at Will. "Figure out a way to make her want to stay with her mama instead of come back into the bay. Without killing her" she said the last part with a stern look tossed over her shoulder at Cade.

"So, got any ideas?" She split her attention between the two as her smile came back, and her cheery tone returned. "Otherwise we're going with plan Slayer and you two can figure out the details as we go."