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4 yrs ago
Current That's being a writer sometimes, man.
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Because they can't be apart.
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We should PUSH the climate SOMEWHERE ELSE!
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R.I.P. XXX
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6 yrs ago
I hoped you were lying Odin. Fuck... anyone but him.

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RISE ROSES, ARISE! THE LAST OF OUR DORMANT ROLEPLAYS AWAKENS ONCE MORE TO FINISH WHAT WE STARTED!

Ahem.

Well it was running WAY longer than I expected so I had to cut the tension short. I'll come up with a full identity of the possessed student, as well as the culprit behind the possessions, by the next reply. I had him hasten Botan's sadness towards a lack of desire to persist living, so Botan heading for the indoor pool is still planned. And you can even have a couple boys try talking to her as she passes them before they end up passing the classroom she left with Kurama and the 'plague master' inside.

I'm rusty, but I'm looking forward to writing out their exchange.
What went unseen through the moist eyes of Shiori Minamino did not go unseen through Kurama’s own. An instantaneous appearance of the Botan he knew, the Botan that both his mother and himself cared deeply for, had shown itself before once again vanishing as quickly as it appeared. The pain that those words caused had struck Botan beneath all of the darkness she was submerged in, causing her to break free just long enough to express regret. She wasn’t entirely lost despite the invisible affliction she carried. There was still hope.

But now that she was compromised, what was the next move?

A frown took the place of the concern that previously marked his features, but he did nothing to stop Botan from walking off and heading to bed. Shiori did not protest it either. Instead she looked at him, eyes still damp from the emotional stress of Botan’s ongoing parental split. To have a heart of good and want to help but deep down know that you could offer very little in return was truly suffering. That was a state of mind that he shared with Shiori. Rather than let the pain of her affliction halt him, Kurama instead rose to his feet and moved beside his mother to offer her a hug she was eager to accept.

“It’s a difficult time for her. She’ll talk about it when she’s ready, I’m sure of it…” Kurama spoke optimistically, countering the somber tone that Botan left for the pair. He caressed her back to offer further comfort, yet there was no whimpering or moaning to be heard. Unexpectedly, she pulled away and looked upon her son with unwavering eyes.

“Shuichi,” Shiori began, “It isn’t what she said that hurts. It’s knowing that I can’t possibly know how she feels, and how to talk to her about it.”

“You can’t blame yourself for that. Neither of us could have known how strongly her situation would impact her.”

“She seemed fine just recently.”

“I thought the same. If I paid more attention, maybe this could have…” Kurama’s voice trailed. He thought back to the ambush after they had left Genkai’s home. The low-class demons that attacked, and the ominous presence he felt all around them… It was so close and intense, but the more he began to think about it, the harder it was to imagine that he missed anything at all. He wasn’t out of practice. His senses should still be strong enough to detect the energy of a demon making all of this occur. So then, why did he not feel out the change in Botan’s presence fully? Even after she revealed her affliction he could sense no change. Only her snapping served as a hint. Just what sort of demon was—

“Shuichi?”

Snapping back to reality, Kurama set his thoughts and feelings aside for now. Focus returned to Shiori. “Sorry, I was just thinking about how I could have been better prepared for a situation like this.”

“If I can’t be blamed, neither can you,” Shiori countered firmly, releasing her son and brushing away idle droplets beneath her eyes. “We can’t change how tonight went, or even her situation. What we can do, is not let her be alone.”

“I don’t intend to. I’ll be there for her, even if she hates me for it.” Kurama, now free to move once more, reached for Botan’s plate and his own. A loss of appetite was to be expected; he couldn’t eat with so much on his mind and wouldn’t try to. Not to mention his mother would need some time to herself as well. “I’ll clean up and get ready for bed. If you’re finished, I’ll take care of everything.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’m sure, mother. Get some rest. I’ll check in on Botan before bed, so don’t worry.”

Ease wasn’t quite the word Kurama would call it, but Shiori appeared to find a little peace in his words and agreed to retire for the evening. Wishing her son goodnight, she stood up and headed to her room. Before she had even left his sight, the thoughts of this new revelation were pouring back to the forefront of his mind.

‘The ambush, as well as the presence I felt… it could only have been then. But why only Botan?’ Kurama thought, preserving Botan’s plate and finding containers for the untouched portions that remained just as mother left them. ‘Do they know who she really is? It would certainly make more sense than just her popularity. And after revealing my strength like that, they still managed to affect her so quickly, and in such a short amount of time. They’re no ordinary opponent.’

Dwelling on his failures would not aid him in finding success from this point forward. Once the last of the containers were filled, the counters wiped down, and the evidence of dinner erased from the dining table, Kurama ascended the stairs minutes after Shiori and approached Botan’s room with soft steps. Slowly, he grasped the knob and held his breath before he cracked it open and peered inside, finding the back of the reaper turned to him while her side rose and fell peacefully. He listened to her breathing for several moments to make certain that she was not pretending before shutting her door. Even with the reassurance that she was asleep, he paused in place and listened for another few moments more.

His paranoia was not rewarded. Botan’s breathing did not shift nor did any new sounds escape her room. Satisfied with this, he retired to his room for the night and proceeded to plan for tomorrow.

And tomorrow came quickly, with sleep not coming easy for him.

He rose an hour earlier than necessary, washing up and dressing for school later in the day. Helping mother prepare breakfast was considered, but he feared for Botan’s state of mind rather than her daily percentage of vitamins being consumed. So, he chose to wait, and was eventually rewarded with the faraway sound of her dressing and eventual departure from her room. Joining her after counting an entire minute in his head, he descended the stairs after her, bag in hand, and managed to catch her gaze on him.

Unlike yesterday, no speck of the Botan he knew was there. Regardless he smiled. “Good morning,” he said. “Did you sleep well?”

As expected, Botan did not reward his courtesy and chose to act as though there was not a rift between them now. She knew that he knew of her affliction, and that was enough for now. The scent of oatmeal and fruit bowls nearby were a welcome sight, but not welcome enough for Botan to even poke at them. He drew closer to the meal, noting how undisturbed both pairs looked. ‘She won’t eat? I’m not sure whether it’s because she lost her appetite or this is an attempt to spite mother for yesterday… then again, it doesn’t really matter.’

Kurama, too, walked past the meals to not leave Botan waiting for him, hoping his mother wouldn’t worry with both untouched. Leaving with her, the trek to school was slower, but because of her refusal to eat she had given them enough leeway to walk slower. He did not complain, and he did not attempt small talk. What he did do – the only thing he could do for her until he figured out a plan – was stay beside her no matter how long she chose to drag her feet. Eventually they had made it with minutes to spare.

The popularity of Botan did not waver regardless of how down she appeared to be. Staying close to her helped keep boys at bay, but the girls weren’t going to be deterred by the new girl. When they approached, Kurama quickly warned them that Botan was feeling quite sick, and that he, too, was beginning to feel ill. A poor lie, but they took it. After all, Shuichi Minamino was an exemplary student, a model representative of Meioh Private Academy. He had no reason to lie to them.

Focusing in class was not only difficult for Botan, but for him too. Whenever he could, his eyes traced to her before returning to the lecture at hand. This back and forth with monitoring her and getting work done had continued through Trigonometry and Chemistry, until finally it was time for lunch. He gathered his things and waited for Botan to gather her own, which took her until only another student and themselves were left in the room.

Finding her second wind, Botan’s pace in gathering her things and making for the door became a respectable pace rather than that of a tortoise. Figuring it was a result of skipping breakfast he thought nothing of it until an unnatural chill brushed against him from behind. It wasn’t lethal energy, nor was it one with threatening intentions. It was just there. A warning, unmistakably from a demon.

“Shuichi Minamino,” came the voice of the unremarkable student tucked in the corner of the room. Kurama stared hard outside the door, hand grasping tightly at the knob. “Or should I just refer to you as Kurama? Or maybe just Yoko?”

Kurama held his tongue and began closing the door, stopping a few inches short of shutting it entirely. His mind raced even as the rest of his body remained still. There were many questions without guarantee of an answer. “…The plague master, I presume?”

“Plague master?” The culprit chuckled. “I like that. Although I expected such a cute nickname from your friend, Koenma’s little helper.”

Kurama turned, coming face-to-face with him at last…
RISE THREAD, RISE!



Dude I'm so fucking sleepy right now lmao I'm gonna lay down for a bit. I didn't check it and just posted it because you would have come back so disappointed if I rest first. I'm a merciful God.
It was hard enough to play this role in front of Ino, who was the entire reason this situation was created in the first place. Now with Sakura’s confirmation, he had to imagine looking someone like Choji in the eye and telling him about this. Being thrust into romance was something he was prepared to do. Being outgoing about his new status as a boyfriend, on the other hand, was one of the last hurdles he needed to get over.

Ino was by far the most outgoing of the two girls, yet even with that knowledge in mind it didn’t make what he had to do with Sakura any easier. She was playing pretend for his sake, with little for her to gain in return, and with that in mind he realized that this was just as new and discomforting for her as it was him. Excluding the last attack on the village, they didn’t speak a word to each other before. Now they had to convince everyone – her best friend included – that they were dating and madly affectionate for one another.

So, when Sakura winked at him, he winked back. No ‘drag’ to be muttered. No longing to be a cloud as he glanced enviously up at the sky. He had to become far bolder to leave a good impression with Ino, to show that he could express himself just as she could. That meant doing things just like that no matter how many cringes he had to suppress beneath his skin as he strained to keep his smile together.

When asked if he had met Sakura’s parents, he only shook his head in response. He had seen them a couple times at the Academy back in the day, but not since, and he wasn’t eager to check out Sakura’s baby pictures, even if she was a cute kid once. He similarly had little to say about shopping. Ino boldly claimed to know his taste and was willing to bestow that knowledge to Sakura the first chance she had. At first, he wanted to question just what Ino thought, but then he saw it; an opportunity to see what Ino thought of him taste-wise. Having Sakura go along with her to try on clothes she thought might appeal to him could work in their favor.

Sakura had steered the conversation to food and spoke of barbecue as their place of choice. He bit his tongue and felt the scolding of Ino’s words before they had even left her mouth. The Yamanaka was right, of course; barbecue was a casual place to eat, and wasn’t fine enough for taking someone you really liked out to eat. Sakura crashed them into a hurdle, but he didn’t blame her for not thinking about it. She wasn’t his girlfriend – wasn’t anyone’s girlfriend – and with her likely holding out for Sasuke, she probably wouldn’t have been anyone’s girl unless Naruto stepped up to the plate. This was just as new to her as it was to him.

“Yeah, I got it,” he replied. “Too used to going with Choji.”

His ‘girlfriend’ recovered by asking for a suggestion while he recovered from the poor choice mentioned prior. The place she mentioned was vaguely familiar; dishes taken from the Hidden Sand, Cloud, Mist, and Stone made the place a popular choice for those wanting to try new things but lacked the time and energy to travel and do it themselves. But most of the high-end dishes were expensive, with only the Sand’s trade deal with the Leaf making their dishes the most affordable of the bunch. If he had the choice, only special occasions would prompt him to spend the kind of money they asked for.

“I’ll keep it in mind,” Shikamaru managed to say before Sakura had tugged his hand and got them moving. He fought the urge to glance back at Ino who he could sense still watching them. Sakura leaned in closely to him only to tell him that he owed her a meal. “Fair enough,” he whispered back. “And barbecue? Seriously? I hope she doesn’t think I’m that unimaginative. Taking a girl out isn’t like taking Choji out.” He smiled despite Sakura’s choice of location earlier and began to consider dining options. Impromptu dating made him hungry.

“That place she’s talking about is expensive, but only if you order the meals from other nations. Trade is nearly impossible except with the Sand because everyone is too busy thinking the other is trying to stab them in the back,” he said. “That said, I’ve got the money for it. I won’t say anything no matter what you order. You stuck your neck out for me, and I appreciate it. And besides, it’ll look good if I take her advice, won’t it?”

A look of contentedness given to her, Shikamaru had begun leading her to the restaurant in question. Unsurprisingly, it wasn’t packed. The drapes were a quality crimson and portraits of faraway landmarks and landscapes were sorted along the open spaces on the walls. Booths along the edges of the interior, along with finer, larger tables near the center had given the place flexibility. The air was thick with powerful scents ranging from grilled fish, to noodles, to sweetly-stewed meat. Beginning to salivate, they were thankfully served mere moments after entering and were seated in an empty corner of the room beside one of the windows leading to the street. The waitress left them with menus and promised to return shortly.

“So, you’re my girlfriend. This is a date,” Shikamaru started with a slight squirm in his seat. “I’d like some pointers. I can make conversation when I want to, but my charm isn’t exactly up to Sasuke’s level.” When Ino spoke she often had much to say. Sakura, he suspected, was very much different. She wasn’t going to be anything like Ino, but she was the closest thing to her right now. Any bit of information could help. “Just pretend for a second that I'm Sasuke, your ideal guy. What would you want me to be doing right now? Be as specific as you can. Anything helps at this stage.”

Sakura must have thought about dates before, whereas he had never thought he’d be sitting here going on a fake one. Daydreaming didn’t consist of special someone’s until just recently. But everyone knew about her affection for Sasuke – she practically wore it on her sleeve and would tell anyone who would ask.

How did people get through this?
ARISE, LEGEND OF KORRA ROLEPLAY. ARISE!!!!

The unease of the situation grew not only because of how Bolin parted ways with her, but because the thought of Mako with Asami pained her. How he looked at her after they kissed should have said it all, yet she still had hope that deep down he felt the same attraction for her as she did him. Finding out tonight wasn’t going to happen. They still needed to check out the competition, and Bolin had given her enough on her plate for one evening.

With the uproar of eager fans beginning to funnel into the stadium, Korra nodded at Bolin’s suggestion, though her smile was weaker and wrought with uncertainty. He didn’t speak about last night. This should have been good – maybe he was even over it by now. They could go the entire evening without mentioning it and pretend that nothing happened. One big misunderstanding. No harm done. They were still going to be friends, and they could still hang out when it suited them. It was a comforting thought.

Unfortunately, that didn’t seem realistic.

Greeting some fans who managed to recognize them both had spared her from the worries that hung over her head, but it wasn’t for very long. Every time she managed to get a quick glance at him he appeared the same, lacking only in jokes and casual conversation that were a staple of his. And that, to her, was the most worrisome thing about this situation. Bolin wasn’t his usual self. There wasn’t a wisecrack to be heard, or a broad smile to be seen. Instead they just came to do what they planned to do. It felt professional of them, but also not who they were at their core.

When they managed to find their seats, the distraction of navigating the stadium to get there had given her one less thing to pay attention to. It was just the two of them, more abnormal than she had ever thought possible. From here it seemed like everyone else around them was behaving genuinely. How she wished that she could have joined them. Unlike those that surrounded her, she sat perfectly still and uncomfortably tense. Her hopes that the game would alleviate her worry had failed, too, and she tried desperately to focus with no success.

Bolin tried again to try and bring some familiarity to the situation, as silent was one thing they weren’t used to being. Korra smiled weakly. “Yeah, they’re really going at it.” In truth, she didn’t know what happened in the last five minutes. A strong shudder ran down her spine as he continued. “I got home okay,” she said, voice dry and just barely audible over the cheers of the crowd with the excitable narration of Shiro Shinobi. “I… took my time, just thinking about things. About…”

Her voice left her, replaced by an apologetic glance in his direction. Something had to be done. If Bolin could be as hurt as he was and still manage to try, then it was up to her to try and meet him halfway. It was the least she could do.

“I messed up last night, and I’m really sorry I didn’t clear things up at the time,” she said breathlessly, shuddering again. “Something... Mako showed up, we talked and after that I was just… I can’t really explain it. I think that even if I could, I wouldn’t want to. That’s me trying to be honest, because the truth is… I didn’t quite see your affection for what it was before.” Her gaze broke from his face, finding the caps of her knees and rooting themselves there. It was cathartic to speak her mind, but not by much. “Or maybe I didn’t want to believe it, even when you told me exactly how you felt before we went out. I was a jerk; I… wanted to feel better, and you were there… and that’s just not fair to you. It wasn’t right. But I know how I feel, and I didn’t feel for you like I did…did…”

Mako.

She couldn’t bring herself to say it yet, and yet Bolin had heard more than enough to put the pieces together. Silly as he was, he was far from stupid. How do you take hearing something like that and not become angry? All she could do now was brace for the worst.
@SoleAccord expect Mace Lite's first post by Thursday.


@Afro Samurai Ayyy, okay, okay, maybe a little collab here and there, too. Let me see where you're at first xP
@The Spectre Do you have any ongoing plans besides making for Chandrila as of now? I'm open to more collabs, and maybe you can make your case to some of the resources under my control. Hit me back :D

@Afro Samurai I was going to create a Jedi Knight NPC in the future to give you someone to bounce off of, but it'll take some time. Are you going to remain waiting for time to pass, or do you have a plan to post soon?
Marvo and Dory listened closely as TB-239 told them what little he knew of the situation he was in. Their opinions on what to do with him didn’t change but drastically differed, and they were left with a choice to make.

When the energy readings of his ship gave a slight bump, Dory powered her engines and cleared the space just above him after a brief look inside. Based on the readings she received, the only thing worth using what little energy he had were the engines. Powering up his weapons would do more harm for his situation than good, and she could see that even if he managed to get a single bolt from even one of those cannons, that would be all there was of his energy. No more signal. If they left him, he lost what might have been his chance to discover what he missed, and would be left out here, alone, with no one to mourn him. No one deserved that.

“Well TeeBee, you can call me Dory, or Alara, or Rogue Five,” Dory mused aloud. “Come to think of it, you can just call me your new best friend.” Her ship, which had settled just behind his own, had begun pulling ahead and returning to the Alliance fleet a sizable distance away. If she calculated correctly, there was enough power to get him to Farfalla Station and the fleet, but not much further. “Just follow me. We’ll integrate you back into the galaxy—“

“Hold on a minute,” Marvo cut in, guiding his Y-wing a short distance behind TeeBee, lining up his laser cannons with the old fighter. “You want to bring it back with us? For what?”

“It is a ‘he’, I can tell by the masculine programming.”

“Not the point right now, Alara.”

Dory felt a shiver of discomfort run down her spine. Being called Alara usually meant things were growing serious. “Right,” she mumbled. “I think it could be good. Think about how much he knows, and what he could have seen. Just look at his ship; no power for shielding or weapons, not to mention the state of the ship in general. He barely has enough power to keep up with me – look.”

TeeBee’s ship, Marvo noted, was moving just as sluggishly as the Y-wings that escorted him. Somehow he was even slower than them, and they weren’t trying to be that much faster than him. If the system power wasn’t stressed, he believed Dory was right. But that didn’t mean he had to like it.

“So say we waste the resources getting this thing looked at—“

“He,” Dory reminded with a drop of frustration. “He’s a he… you know… unless TeeBee doesn’t want that. This channel isn’t private; he can hear everything we’re saying. He might be an older model, but he isn’t unintelligent.”

Marvo held his tongue. Dory’s passion for Droids had made her their ally in everything, including giving proper respect where others would not. She introduced herself to any astromech unit in the Alliance fleet, and was the shoulder for any protocol droid to lean on. Normally he kept all that in mind. But this droid wasn’t meant to help anyone. All it could do was find ways to kill people. The galaxy didn’t need more killer tacticians to add to a war that should have been over by now.

“I understand. Let’s try this again then.” The laser cannons of his ship were still trained on Teebee’s fighter, but remained unpowered until he saw fit to charge them. With reduced speed, they would be able to make it back to the station within the next fifteen to twenty minutes. That was more than enough time to figure out what to do with TeeBee that did not involve his destruction.

“TB-239, my name is Marvo. While I don’t see the use in bringing you back with us, Dory seems to believe you may be worth saving. I’m willing to believe that you’re worth the effort if she is, because my team and I, we support one another… no matter how crazy the idea seems.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment!” Dory chimed in cheerfully, tilting her ship rightward and executing a barrel roll.

Marvo smiled to himself despite his seriousness, but shook off Dory’s infectious enthusiasm. “Alright… let me start by telling you now that the Clone Wars are over. The leaders of the Confederacy were executed and their droid armies were powered down. As for the Republic, we lost just as you and your people did. The galaxy as you remember it is gone. No more clone army, no more significant presence of Jedi – nothing but a Galactic Empire down an Emperor and Lord of the Sith, and an Alliance dedicated to defeating them and working towards creating the New Republic and protecting it with our lives.”

For a moment, Marvo wondered how he would take it if he woke up and was told that the very thing he was created to do no longer mattered. Where would this leave TeeBee, and how could Dory give him new purpose? Was there even room in this old unit to do something new?

“Any questions?”

~-~-~

@Lauder


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