[ PP - F04 ] The ( Weeb ) Journal <<Avalanche>>

[Vivlia 0]

Vivlia sighed tiredly and groaned, rubbing her eyes. “Why is it so cold in floor four?” She whispered, shuddering at the extreme chilliness. Rubbing her elbows she looked around her surroundings. “T-there has to be some kind of restaurant or shop around here right?” She muttered, pushing her glasses up to see a more clear view.

Spotting a nearby tavern, she quickly strides over to it. I’m not the type to go in bars but this is what’s around, she sighed heavily, “Hearth and Harrow huh?” She tilted her head at the sign. Odd name.. agh! What are you still standing around for Vivlia?! She huffed, quickly entering the tavern. 

A fresh wave of warm air blasted in her face. “Ah.. that feels nice,” she smiled happily, rubbing her hands together. Maybe they have some drinks here.. she walked over to a couple stools in front of a counter, I guess I should stay here a bit until it gets warmer. She sighed, sitting down on the stool. “Uhm..” she spoke in a voice barely above the whisper. “Do you have any coffee? Any kind will do,” she smiled warmly at the tender, who gave a gruff nod and walked off. 

As she was waiting, she scanned the tavern. It was decent sized, but there wasn’t anybody there except her, the bartender, and a guy sitting at a table in front of a window with a cat, most likely his familiar. As she looked closer at him, she could see that he was scribbling something down on a small book. A book? A notebook perhaps? I have to ask where he got it.. ugh, but how? Darn you social awkwardness! She looked left and right before sighing and muttering to herself. “Here goes nothing..” she stood up from her stool with shaky legs and walked over awkwardly to the player.

She nervously tapped him in the shoulder, “Uhm.. so I was over there,” she said in a hush vice pointing over to her seat. “A-and I saw you writing in a book, I was wondering where you got that? I would love to have on myself,” she gave a sheepish smile.

@Pinball

Edited May 14, 2018 by Vivlia

[Pinball 1]

A blast of cold air momentarily filled the tavern as the door swung open. Pinball instinctively sat up in his chair, his open journal still clutched in both hands. Zomekko lie sprawled out across the small table. He sat in front of a window, where he could twist his chair to look outside if he so wished. He didn't know why, but he couldn't help but feel uncomfortable if he wasn't either by a window or hugging a wall when he sits. A nervous tick, maybe. He watched as the girl went over to the counter, presumably ordering something, judging by the bartender's response (he couldn't hear the girl's quiet voice). He was a bit put off by the sudden arrival of another player. Usually it was just him; with no way to get drunk, people usually only frequented taverns after an adventure or towards the end of the day. He buried his nose in the book once more, sinking in his chair. He peeked over the book to quickly get a read on the girl, but her back was facing him. Maybe she's cute, he thought, maybe she'll talk to me. He shook his head. Pinball felt like leaving then and there. 

A tap on the shoulder and a whisper in the ear - Pinball suddenly sprang up, slamming the leather tome shut in a hurry. He placed the book on the table before looking over to the girl, blushing. "W-what? Pardon?" He couldn't hear the girl over his own heartbeat ringing in his ears. "Where did I get it? Uhh..." Pinball shrugged, gritting his teeth. "I, uhh, I don't remember... sorry." It wasn't the truth, but right now he was more concerned with getting the girl away from him than helping out. 

[Vivlia 0]

She jumped back a bit from the sudden movement with a loud ‘eek!’. “Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry..” she fretted, backing up a couple steps. Clutz. She gulped nervously and rubbed the back of her neck. Scanning his face, she sighed. I’m annoying him aren’t I? Of course I am.. She pushed up her glasses with a sad smile. “It’s okay.. I see that I’m annoying you. You don’t have to say it, I’ll leave you be,” She sighed heavily, I just wanted to ask where he got the book. She bit her lip, rubbing her elbows. “I-I guess I’ll be over there,” she pointed glumly at her stool and dragged her feet over there. Alone.

As she sat down, a heavy sigh came from her. I guess this is what happens when I try to socialize. I guess I’m not as confident as I think I am.. she sniffed solemnly. A few heartbeats later, the bartender gave a a mug of coffee with a bit of whipped cream added on top. She looked up at him and smiled, “Thanks..” her hands brought the mug up to her lips where she took a long and relaxing sip from. This isn’t actually that bad.

@Pinball

[Pinball 1]

Pinball leaned back in his seat, dragging the journal into his lap as he did. His face felt like it was on fire. "N-no, it's fine!" Pinball started to stand, but the girl was already walking away. He grit his teeth. Say something, he screamed at himself, but he couldn't force himself to do it, as much as he wanted. With a defeated frown, Pinball sat down. "Sorry," he murmured again, more to himself than anyone else, picking up the leather book he had dropped. Zomekko rolled over, exposing her shadowy stomach, analyzing Pinball with curious white eyes. He tapped his journal, opened its interface, and returned it to his inventory. Pinball folded his hands, and stared at his cat. 

Another blast of frigid air filled the bar as two more players walked in. Before they entered the shop, their yellow health bars were visible in front of their avatars, disappearing as they stepped inside. Two teenagers; one with dark-brown hair and green eyes, the other a blonde with blue. Both looked defeated. The brunette gave out a long sigh as he made his way over to the bartender, the blonde a few feet behind as he closed the door. "God, that sucked." From across the room, still by the door, the blonde smirked. "Yeah, and whose fault is that? I told you to bring buffs." The brunette scowled, waving the barkeep over. "Two Honey Ale, please," he grumbled, then, turning to the blonde player as he approached, "and you weren't much help either, man. You're supposed to be the tank! Why were you staying in the back?" The bartender slid two drinks across the counter towards the two players. The blonde laughed. "I don't know, but that sounds like loser talk to me. Trying to push it on me." The blonde glanced over at @Vivlia, and grinned. He slid his stool over to the girl, where he sat, leaning his head on the back of his hand. "Hello." 

[Vivlia 0]

The peach haired girl rubbed her forehead. Agh.. why cant I be as social as other people? She sighed, taking another large mouthful of coffee. But his coffee is really good, I should come here more often. A small smile came upon her lips, maybe I should ask how he made it? She shook her head, nah, that’s stupid. 

A small yelp escaoedbher as she felt a strong cold breeze roll in. Cooollldddd.. she shook herself and took another sip of the warm coffee.  As a sigh of relief escapes her, she looked around. Two more players have entered the tavern, they both seemed to have been beaten in some kind of battle. Maybe a field boss? How am I supposed to know, I barely do any quests.. she frowned, watching a players order their drinks and blabber more about their last battle. 

She squealed as she felt a precense near her. “O-oh.. hi,” she nodded meekly and scooted her stool a few inches away, clearly uncomfortable by the atmospheres. Oh lord, this is getting weird. Should I just leave? No, no. That’s mean. Maybe I should tell them I’m leaving, aghhh. That would be just as mean! What to do, what to do...

@Pinball

Edited May 14, 2018 by Vivlia

[Pinball 1]

Pinball leaned forward, folding his arms and resting his head on his sleeves. He watched Zomekko toss and turn on the wooden table. The furniture gave no sign she was even on it; Pinball knew from playing with the cat that she was essentially weightless. Her shadowy, gaseous form had proved its worth many times in battle. Somehow, when she enveloped his weapon (or any part of his body for that matter), it hurt a lot more to get hit with it. He stuck a tongue out at the cat, Zomekko flopping onto her stomach, staring right back at him. 

The blonde smirked, leaning against the counter as the girl shied away. "Don't be shy, I don't bite." The player took a hearty gulp of his drink before returning his gaze to the girl parallel to him, cold blue eyes looking her up and down. "Do you have a party? You don't seem to be terribly powerful. Want to come hang out with us? We have a quest we're doing: Avalanche." At this moment, the brunette swung his head around to face the two - the green-eyed player was seated further away. "We're pretty strong ourselves," the blonde boasted, "but that thing is tough." He slid closer to her, offering his hand. "Come on," he grinned, "it'll be fun. The name is Blade." The brown-haired player, upon hearing this snorted with laughter, but Blade gave no indication he had heard it. 

[Vivlia 0]

She bit her lip awkwardly and gave a small huff. Sure ya don’t. Rolling her eyes, she took a mouthful of coffee before scooting her seat even farther. She felt especially nervous when she felt his stare, can this guy give it a rest, he’s giving me the creeps. Raising a brow at him, she shook her head slowly. “I-I.. I think I’ll pass,” she said quietly, pushing her glasses further up. Sighing she rolled her eyes again, Yes.. I can totally see how strong you are by your health not too long ago, a replied in her head bitterly. She nodded her head and crossed her arms, “Nice to meet you.. Blade,” she said coldly. This guy is probobaly one of the most egocentric people I’ve ever met. 

The peach haired player sighed and felt a spark emerge from within her. “Yeah, you see. I don’t give two craps on what you were doing or what your name is. So do me a favor and get the heck away from my face,” as soon as she was finish she gasped, covering her mouth. Oh crap, what is wrong with me? Did I just say that? Oh no, no, no. What is this game doing to me?! Her figure nervously looked up with one eye and fretted, “I-I, didn’t m-mean that..” 

[Pinball 1]

Pinball perked up at the sudden uproar. I thought she was the shy type, he thought passively, flicking his cat's paw. He leaned forward, still keeping his head down, though now watching the scene progress with curious eyes. They hadn't seemed to notice him yet, and Pinball wanted to see what happened next. 
Blade's eyes flickered with anger. His fists clenched at his sides, and he recoiled as if he had been struck. "Wow, alright," he growled, standing. With a very obscene curse and a few angry glares at the girl as he walked over to his friend, he spun around and kicked the chair at her. The wooden stool rocketed towards Vivlia, though he didn't stop to see if it had struck. Blade motioned for his friend to follow him, and the two stormed out of the bar, into the cold. 
Pinball raised his eyebrows as he watched the events unfold, wincing when he saw the man kick the chair at her. He started to slowly stand, unsure whether offering his help would be a weird thing to do or not. 

 

[Vivlia 0]

The peach haired player gave a nervous gulp. “N-no, I didn’t really mean that,” she whispered, back up a few steps. Oh sheesh, what is this game doing to me? I’m not myself. “Now don’t be irrational here..” she called after him, only for him to ignore her and walk away. At least he’ll leave me alone no- she stopping mid sentence when she realized a stool was hurtling towards her. “Ack!” She barely dodged it by jumping out of her chair with a loud thud. Wha- what? How..? Wait.. huh..?

The short player sat there with a horrified look on a her face. Coming to her sense, she rubbed her eyes only to realize her glasses had fallen off. Huh, I can see. I was as blind as an old rabbit back in the real world. I guess SAO has its perks.. I still like my glasses though, she puffed, skjakinf her head and slowly rising up. “Awe, where did they go?” She whispered out loud, her eyes fixated on the ground. What is going on with me? I talked out of place two times in the last hour, ugh.

@Pinball

[Pinball 1]

That settled it. Pinball stood, snapping his fingers and patting the side of his leg. Seeing this, Zomekko scrambled to her feet, and effortlessly glided onto his shoulder. Those guys are... He shook his head, an annoyed expression stealing his features. Pinball hung back for a moment, then shook his anxiety off. He made his way over to the girl, easily finding and picking up the glasses off of the floor. Why does she wear these? Pinball was reminded of Reinholt, who, despite having had his vision restored during SAO, insisted on wearing an eyepatch. "Old habits die hard," he had said. 

Pinball offered the girl her glasses. "Here," he said softly. He bit his lip, Zomekko's shadowy form curling around his neck like a scarf; it looked to be an uncomfortable resting position, but she was weightless, and gravity had no effect on her, so it couldn't bother the cat. Besides, she looked happy enough, with her closed eyes and lolling, pure white tongue. If she wasn't mute, Pinball was sure she'd be purring. "Are... are you alright?" Pinball went over to pick up the stools that had fallen over in the exchange. 

[Vivlia 0]

The poor girl had almost given up hope. How can my stupid glasses get lost so easily? Do I even need them anyways? Her figure sighed as she tapped her leg impatiently. Stupid bullies, her lips turned into a pout as she realized she was in the same situation she was two year ago. It’s not my fault the stupid idiot was talking too much about himself. Blah blah me, and look how strong I am, oh for lords sake shut up! Her gaze felt like it burnt a hole through the wooden floor.

Vivlia shot straight up when she felt someone near her. Did those jerks come back because I swe-! Her eyes widened in surprise at the sight of @Pinball. “O-oh,” She stuttered our, graciously taking the glasses, “thanks,” she gave a small nod before sliding her glasses on, feels nice with them on, she let out a sigh of relief. Turning to the other player she gave a tiny smile,  and it grew a tiny bit bigger when she saw Zomekko. What a cute Familiar, maybe I should try and get one, it couldn’t hurt right?

Blinking off her thoughts, she gave a firm not, “O-oh yeah,” she bit her lip and shrugged, “I’m fine, nothing I haven’t delt with before,” she pushed up her glasses with a tired sigh. “Thanks again,” she mumbled, quickly averting her gaze to the windows of the tavern.

[Pinball 1]

"It's... It's no problem." Pinball glanced over to the door as he finished saying that, just briefly catching her averting her gaze as well. Oh, Jesus Christ, he thought bitterly, this is what happens when two anxious pieces of [bleep lmao] try to talk together. He looked back at the girl in front of him, took a step back, and set the chair back on its feet. He took a seat in one, glanced at the girl, and scooted a bit further away. He had seen her little outburst, and he didn't want her to think he was coming on to her like Blade. Pinball grinnned to himself, and ordered a drink, "Just water, please." He tapped the counter as he waited, accepted the glass from the waiter with a quick "Thank you," then went on to say, in a nasally, purposely obnoxious voice, "boys love the gamer grills." He stared into his cup, swirling the water, then without another word took a long drink, his eyes slowly closing on their own; he hadn't slept at all last night. "Avalanche is easy as hell, too," he grumbled. "I bet they're like... level 4. Tops." 

[Vivlia 0]

Well this is awkward, she thought to herself silently. She took a seat at her original stool, taking a sigh of relief when she realized her coffee was still warm. Taking a mouthful, she quickly gulped it down with a relaxed puff. This was probabaly going to be the highlight of my day of those two jerk faces didn’t appear, the player gave a silent but angry huff. I can’t beleive they’re trying to pick up girls in this situation. 

She silently watched @Pinball for a few seconds, trying to figure him out. Maybe he’s not as social either, that was pretty clear before the whole thing happened. She nodded to his statement, “I guess so,” she murmured, taking another sip of her coffee. I’m not even level 4. She sighed depressingly, why am I even on this floor anyways? The heck, this floor is already out my reach so far. “Yeah,” she slightly nodded her head. Guess so. But they would snap me in half like a twig. 

[Pinball 1]

Pinball stood there for a brief moment as the girl sat herself back down. Once again, he wasn't quite sure what to do. Would the normal thing to do be push a conversation? She might think you're coming onto her, he worried. Being lost in thought, Pinball wasn't taking care of hiding his emotions, so his thoughts were easily betrayed by his facial expressions. "Welp," Pinball said suddenly, looking down the room. In an instant, Zomekko landed silently on the ground, leaving a faint trail of shadow in her wake. He grinned, and let out a long, drawn out sigh, "I'll just be going, then." Pinball kept walking backwards, leaning into the doorway. He rested a warm hand on the cold doorknob. "Into the cold. By myself. To fight the monster. By myself." Pinball opened the door, casting puppy eyes over his shoulder as he took a single step out. "To fight that big, bad monster. By myself. I might even die." He shrugged again, letting out another big sigh, a smile still tugging at the corners of his mouth. 

Then, he fidgeted. He had known what he was trying to do, and he knew that it was a comedic thing; and yet, in that instant, he shut down. Everything he had said and done suddenly felt immensely more awkward. Pinball's face grew bright red, and he panicked, spinning around on his heel. He frantically shot finger guns at the girl on the counter. "See you later, baby hater..?" Pinball grit his teeth. "You have broccoli in your teeth, hottie." Pinball freaked out even more, his hands shaking as he gripped his head. "Oh, God." Pinball pushed out into the cold, slamming the door behind him. Pinball, immensely embarrased, could swore there was steam rising from his cheeks. What. The. Hell. 

Edited May 21, 2018 by Pinball

[Vivlia 0]

Vivlia gave a small and soft chuckle as she watched @Pinball concentrate, giving him a silent smirk. He must be as awkward as me.. the peach haired girl thought humorously. Her gaze shifted to his cat, interesting.. I should get a familiar soon. It’d be handy. She sighed and watched him back away. “Alright,” she chuckled, raising her hand to give a slight wave. “Go get ‘em.” Her mouth twitched into a small smile. “Don’t die of hypothermia before then..” she giggled, watching him walk away. Giving a heavy heave, she shook her head, “It feels like you want me to come with you,” she murmured, rubbing her forehead.

Her brow raised at the uneasy aura he was giving off. Well things got.. weird, she awkwardly rubbed the back of her head as he shot fingers guns at her, which she was too confused to shoot back. “Baby hater..?” She whispered to herself, her forehead creasing. Broccoli..? I’m confused. She didn’t realize she was staring at her hands until she heard him shakily murmur and headed out. “H-huh?” She looked at the bartender who just shrugged and went back to cleaning mugs. Oh jeez, I’m probably going to regret this, she thought, heading straight out into the cold. “W-wait up!” She quickly caught up with the brown haired player.

Edited May 25, 2018 by Vivlia

[Pinball 1]

Pinball walked in circles, his arms held out wide at his sides. His mouth was open, revealing his grit teeth; the cold air froze the short, rapid breaths that escaped him. He brought his hands up to his head, smacking his palms against his temple. What. The actual. Hell. He knew he had told himself to try and be social, but he didn't know that the only way he could interact with people was uncomfortably horrible flirting. Well, to be fair, he reasoned, his red face betraying his embarrasment, you're the one who got yourself into that situation. Pinball shook his head. Just run. Run away as fast as you can. Get away from this place. Start a new life. And Pinball spun around on his heel to do just that, kicking up snow with his twirl. 

“W-wait up!” Pinball stopped mid-stride. Uh oh. His head slowly craned to the side. He managed to catch a glimpse of the girl in his peripheral vision, and he shot back into place, his back facing the girl. Oh God, oh God. Pinball, slowly, painfully, managed to force himself into facing the girl (though he couldn't bring himself to make eye contact). "Uhh.."