Scout

Letters for Tomorrow [Adventure-centric, Dystopian, 1x1x1]

*Runs into the room, huffing and puffing* Oh my, oh goodness, oh gracious! Huff puff huff puff! Now, what were my lines... *ahem*

Hello, there! Welcome to the world of POKéMON! My name is OA- Wait... no, wrong script, very sorry about that! *Rifles through the desk and digs through several papers* I wasn't expecting guests, so I apologize for the disorganization! Ah, here it is!

It's been a long time... you know, since you kill- NO GOD DAMMIT, THAT'S GLaDOS!!

Okay, I'm going to improvise. Hello, there, Tigre! Hope to have lots of fun. ^_^ If you've got any questions about me or for me, let me know.

The Last Embers

Hooray!~

Until the End (Scout and Vena Sera)

There was a loud shattering sound as the boss was felled, but Komada didn't even look up to see her small portion as she felt a pair of arms wrap around her. She cringed away as the familiar voice reached her, but as his words registered, she shook her head and shoved him off, "No! It's not safe, Ren!" She shouted, falling away slightly and clumsily climbing to her feet. "And I'm not okay. In fact, I'm scared to death - I almost died, nothing is safe here... Not you, not me, nobody." She could feel eyes on her from every direction, the murmurs and whispers filled the room at a low rumble, but she ignored them as her eyes locked with his. "If it's over, Ren," The girl started with more venom than she had meant to, "Then why am I not waking up in my room, scrambling to finish my homework before school tomorrow? If it's over now, then why aren't my parents knocking on my door to make sure I'm studying and not running off to see you?"

She was seething with her hands clenched at her sides as the girl felt a sudden pressure about her upper arm and a tug. "What are you doing?" She asked the girl - it was Lily, but she was a bit confused by the motion, "You don't even like me."

"No, but Hana cares about you. This isn't the place to do this," She said flatly, pulling the girl with her and away from the crowd, breaking through the ranks of the circle in order to pass by. They ascended to the next floor and gradually the large group of players eventually dispersed, rumours and questions going with them. A lot of people were still having problems, so it wasn't really out of the ordinary, but the scene's setting was strange and would likely be the talk of the floor. The twins had kept Hanta and Komada separate for a while before bringing them into one room. There were two beds - it was the twins' room, of course. Lily sat with Hanta and Komada with Hana in the silence for a while. She still seemed angry - though the 'why' was confusing.

"I don't know what you're waiting for, I've said everything," She stated, chewing the inside of her cheek in irritation.

Lily rolled her eyes and looked at Hanta, "She's right. It's not safe and clearly that wasn't the kind of place for somebody like her." She sat cross-legged on the bed, her arms crossed, "But at least you tried to protect her," Her attention turned to Komada, "And while this place isn't safe, right now, she is."

Far From Home

Stars dotted the sky as a million pairs of feline eyes in the dark, glinting downward toward three teenagers with the depth of a bottomless chasm. A soft breeze carried with it the cool air of the mountain as lights lined the residences about the small village, dimly illuminating the narrow, rather primitive roads.

“Well, I’d better get going, guys. I’ve got a competition tomorrow and I have to be up early – you guys’ll be there in the afternoon, right?” Asked a boy of no more than fifteen as he rubbed his nose, adjusting the scarf about his neck to keep warm.

“Wait, that was tomorrow?” Alex asked with a furrowed brow, holding up his hand and counting on his fingers as though he was trying to figure out the date, eliciting a small giggle from the nearby Mizuki.

“Of course we’ll be there, Hiro, cheering you on as always,” She said to reassure him as his face flashed with worry that his best friend truly had forgotten the event.

Alex laughed and nodded, shoving his hands into his coat pockets after pulling up the collar a bit more, “Yeah, good luck. Get your rest and we’ll see you tomorrow,” He stated as he and the girl beside him waved to the budding snowboarder as he took another street to get home.

Mizuki sighed softly, a small smile resting over her lips. Alex paused, watching her for a moment before she blushed and looked away, “What?” She asked slightly more sharply than she had meant to.

He flinched, “Oh, uh, sorry… You’re always smiling – why?” The boy asked curiously as they began walking again.

The girl’s eyes drifted up to the sky as her hands clasped together in front of her, their pace slowing to a very lazy crawl. “Hmm… I don’t know. Why not? I don’t have a reason not to, I think that’s enough,” She rebutted, turning her head towards him as he raised an eyebrow.

“Erm… Okay,” He replied with a nod, laughing softly as he felt something pull his hand from his pocket and lock with him. His eyes glanced down to see her smaller fingers between his and he looked around, “MIzuki, we’re in publ-“ His statement was soon cut off.

“Nobody’s here, Alex, we’ll be okay,” She promised teasingly before he nodded, squeezing her hand softly.

Minutes in pleasant silence passed before they reached a corner and they paused, Mizuki breaking the quiet, “I’ll see you tomorrow,” She said softly, moving to release his hand and go home.

Alex didn’t release her as she moved to go home, “Hold on, can we keep walking for a while?” He asked.

The girl seemed to be thinking for a few moments, tapping her chin before nodding, “I suppose so,” She teased, “But just until we get to my house.” The boy nodded in agreement as they started walking again, though something seemed to be weighing on his mind now. When he said nothing, she cleared her throat, halting their movement and turning to face him. “Is everything okay?” The girl asked, sounding a little bit worried.

Alex seemed to snap from thought as she addressed him and he shook his head, “Oh, sorry… I must have spaced out,” He explained with an embarrassed smirk.

Mizuki remained, staring at him skeptically, “What’s on your mind, then?” She asked flatly. Credit where it was due, the girl wasn’t afraid to ask questions or be invasive. Her hair was dark and fell to her shoulders, pinned back with a red barrette. Another gust of wind ruffled her muffled and she tucked her chin down more tightly into it until it slowed as Alex seemed to be thinking of how to place his words.

“I dunno, just glad to have you and Hiro, I guess… I don’t know how we all stay friends – we’re all opposites from each other,” He pointed out, shrugging.

She nodded in reply, “I don’t see how we wouldn’t stay friends; we never run out of things to do or talk about because of it,” she quipped. “Now what were you really thinking about?”

Good god, nothing got past her. Alex grasped her other hand and sighed, “I really don’t know, I just feel like… Well, have you ever left the house feeling like you forgot something, but it isn’t for a while that you realize what it was, but you really wish that you’d remembered it before leaving?”

The girl nodded, clearly confused, “Did you… forget something? You’ll be home in a little bit, right? I’m sure you’ll remember in time… Was it something to do with Hiro’s competition tomorrow?”

He shook his head, “No, it’s hard to explain… Hey, uh, what do you think your parents will think when we tell them about… us?” The boy asked a bit nervously; he wanted nothing short of making her happy, but he wasn’t on any track to fortune or status and they had long-since wanted Mizuki to stop hanging out with him and Hiro so much.

The girl shook her head, “We’ll worry about that when we come to it.” She smiled and let go of his hands, hugging his neck reassuringly, “How are you the high-strung one when it comes to us? Such a worried guy,” She pointed out with a laugh, leaning back and beaming at him teasingly.

He shifted a bit uneasily, “Alright, alright, I’ll try to be easier,” He said sincerely. “I don’t know why I’m so wound-up, you know I’m usually not… In fact, nothing does that to me apart from you…” Her face distorted into one of slight pain and confusion. A moment later, Alex realized what he said and shook his head, “No, no, I mean… In a good way; I just want so badly to do something right that I’m not used to it, that’s all.”

Mizuki seemed satisfied and replied with a smile, “Better.” She told him, biting her lip for a brief moment before leaning forward and pushing herself up on her toes. What was happening? Alex stood there blankly for a moment as her arms pulled and he felt her growing ever closer to him. A moment later, their lips connected and…

He watched another creature shatter into a hundred shards, a menacing scowl on his face as he tore through one after another. He needed to forget, needed to stop thinking, and needed to find that numbness again. His friends were all tackling a unique quest today, and he’d decided not to go, knowing they would assume that he wanted to be alone or that he didn’t want to go out so soon. In reality, he was trying to slowly ease out of their field of vision, hoping they would simply forget him.

---

Nero smiled softly as he read through the message he’d received only minutes ago. He got one every time he was going after a boss or any other challenge – sometimes just before his daily grinding. It was from Yuna and it had to be at least a thousand words… Her eloquence amazed him. The material hunter was a poor speaker, despite his mental capacity, but he had his own ways of impressing and shocking people. As he finished reading, he heard Kenshin and Alphard starting after somebody and he looked up in confusion. He closed his menu and stuffed his hands into his pockets, striding easily over to them as an argument about the sapience of NPCs was brought forth. Nero sighed, These things are just as soulless as the monsters we kill every day… They may not be hostile, but that doesn’t mean that they can feel… Even the conversations are algorithm based, he thought before shaking his head. No, he shouldn’t be so disapproving of the strange boy’s beliefs. He clearly wasn’t Japanese, but he had a really heavy sense of honor, it seemed. Nero shrugged and waited for the scene to settle before clearing his throat.

“Feel free to join us, erm, Jason…” He said, though his mouth felt like it was full of marbles when he said the name. It had such a strange sound to it, like the sounds were all out of place. It would take some practice, as Nero’s English pronunciations were rather awful. “You’ll not be getting away with anything more than you’ve earned, though. Our drop rules are sealed rather tightly, and to be honest… While you seem sincere, I have a rather hard time believing you because of pure logic… I try my best to empathize, though, so you can come along. Don’t forget, however, we’re all top-tier clearers, so if you try anything, you’ll be out-numbered and overcome before you can do anything,” He stated flatly. In all honesty, he would have liked to have Fitch with them, as they were quite lacking in their damage threshold without him.

Nero worked on his own as they moved about the dungeon, making rather strong progress, though it felt quiet in the approach to the quest’s endpoint. When the knights appeared, he was able to take on two alone and give assistance with another before they were all wiped out.

Resounding Provocation: The Council of Shadows

Okay, am I the only one that's worried? >_>

Resounding Provocation: The Council of Shadows

((Wrong thread))

Digital or Real?

I hope so too. CG had greeeeaaaat music - I'd say it rivaled Clannad's scoring. I really liked CG's second opening, gets stuck in my head alll the time. XD Angel Beats too... excellent music. I like AoT, but I've nly seen 1-15, because my friend and I watch it together and we've been busy ;n; but it's really good. So no spoilers yet. :p I'm glad you look forward to posting. XD I was worried I took too long.

Digital or Real?

James tilted his head curiously as she began to make a suggestion; a call for the two of them cut her short and while he was interested in what she was going to say, it was completely forgotten in that moment. He gave a small laugh, "Good - I love the night time," He told her a little bit proudly. Any time before the sun came up or after it went down was the most desirable time of day for James simply because it was quiet and so easy to get lost in a different world there. As they walked back to their parents, he remembered something she had mentioned and finally decided to address it, "Er, yeah... I try really hard to hide it, but I'm really bad at art... I can't do a lot with my hands... Like, uh, up here," He said, motioning to his head, "I can have a perfect picture of what I want to see, but... When I try to make it, it just comes out bad," he said. After a moment of thought, he smiled, "Also, science... A lot of people don't get it... like the teachers keep saying that math and science need each other, but they don't... It's only science that needs math," He argued, clearly trying to hide his agitation at the common comparison.

Sasha's polite demeanor was well-received by James's parents, though Matt continued his light heckling every now and then, it was beginning to feel more like natural joking than actual teasing and James would quip back at him. The car was finally unpacked and everybody had begun to resign to their usual evening activities after Peter vetoed the request to go to the cinema. Rather, he took up a book and sat in his chair in the parlour. Matt took the remote for the television and sprawled onto the sofa as Mrs. Delacourt was off... doing something... mom-things, they would all assume.

"Hang on a minute," He said brightly to her as she asked what they could do and he disappeared, the sound of his feet pounding up the stairs filled the house for several moments.

The parlour was a cozy little den as the sound of Doctor Who's millionth season filled the room, Matthew staring like a zombie with a smile plastered across his face. A gas fireplace was turned off nearby but it added a bit of a gentleness to the atmosphere. The coffee table had a cabinet attached beneath it which was home to various board games as well as a rather nice chess set. James's father and brother were notorious for never letting him win a game while his mother always seemed to make a move that would deliberately lead to her loss. Only once had James seen noticed a falter in his brother's attitude at one of his moves, but it was quickly cleared and the older sibling overtook him... But that taste of victory was reassuring, at least, that he was improving. Nearby, one could see the cover of Peter's book - it read Number9Dream with the name "David Mitchell" printed along the edge. The man fixed his reading glasses and would glance over at Matt, then to Sasha and (when he was in the room) James, keeping an eye about the room every now and then. The curtains were drawn, but the soft glow of streetlamps peeked through slightly.

Another series of thumps sounded as James returned in a pair of gym shorts and a cleaner shirt before he entered the parlour once more and sat down near her. "Uh, well it's up to you, there are lots of games in the cabinet there, I brought down my dad's old games, or we cou- Gah, Matt, would you turn the telly down? We're trying to talk."

"And I'm trying to watch!" The older brother argued back, the volume rising once more.

"Boys," Peter cut a bit sharply, "Cool it. Matt, turn it down, I'm trying to read - James, maybe you and Sasha could go up to your room, or any other room, so that Matt doesn't keep cranking the volume up on this drivel?"

Both boys seemed offended for a minute, but James was surprisingly the first to speak, "It's not drivel - it's a great show," He stated factually, "Just too loud and I've seen this episode a million times... I really don't know how Matt likes this one... I hated this season..."

An argument seemed ready to boil over between the two before Peter cleared his throat, "Another room, James," He chimed, though it was clearly a warning. "My god, you two can make a fight out of anything," He muttered as he rolled his eyes.

"Fine," the boy sighed, "If you wanna play something out of the cabinet, we can grab it quietly before we go wherever... I'll bring the games," He said, motioning to the decade-old handheld and its pile of Pokemon, Zelda, and Mario games. The thing was in great condition for its age; though the devices and games weren't exactly ancient in the gaming world, they were certainly long-forgotten by most of the new generation.

Once they had gathered their things and left the room, James awkwardly tapped the floor with his foot, "We can go up to my room if you want; it's, uh, kind of a mess, but... I mean, there's plenty of room," He said, "Or the dining room has a table and stuff - whatever you wanna do," He suggested with a shrug. "And we can start with whichever game you want - you're the guest."

Average age?

Going on 19 in October - currently 18.

The Last Embers

It's okay, LJ! I'm so swamped with school right now... My god... When the semester ends, I'll be a lot more available.