Lessa

The cacophony drew mixed emotions. On one hand, Lessa appreciated the cheerful atmosphere, and seeing so many familiar faces in one place. On the other, those same faces all seem occupied. What was one to do when there was nobody to party with? Did Koga have a dog she could play with or something? Dwelling on it, she placed the platter on a tiny island of empty counterspace, and popped a deviled egg in her egg. Then nearly choked on it when a hand landed on her shoulder. "Jomei, hey," Lessa mumbled around a mouthful of paprika-spiced paste. A hand hovered an inch away from her mouth

"I'm pretty sure there are people who would kill to stay in their twenties forever." Though it was actually a pretty morbid subject, Lessa's gave a soft laugh. "So maybe we should consider ourselves lucky." At the mention of Meokka, she tilted her head in thought. "I don't think I'm familiar with that name. Meokka, I mean. I remember Dom. He actually gave me a weapon, but that was a million years ago, and it randomly disappeared from my inventory at one point. I guess there are some weapons that do that? I'm keeping a close eye on Hell Rose now, because I'd be devastated if that one vanis

"Growing up," Lessa echoed, grimacing. "I guess we could still call it that. I'm only, what, twenty something? Twenty somethings get to make dumb decisions, and then figure out how to navigate the fallout." She raked her fingers through her mane of blonde hair, then shook it back from her face with a quick groan. "I feel so, so much older. I'm going to assume gray hairs aren't a thing in Aincrad, because if they were, I'd look like an old lady." She caught herself then, recognizing how easily she could slip into a joke about her appearance. How long had it been since she had dropped a com

That was an easy question to answer. Yet when Lessa opened her mouth, the words simply would not come. Bahr is what I want, she wanted to say. Or, at least, what she thought she wanted to say. But no matter how she tried to corral the words, the sentence wouldn’t form, and the words never left her lips. All that slipped past was a soft puff of air, like the last of a breath she’d been holding for far too long. “I’m not sure what I want,” she finally admitted. Her hands slipped silently into her pockets, and when she gazed up at her friend, she felt impossibly small in comparison. “It feel

"I know." The words were hardly audible, a whisper in the cozy space. "I know it. All of it." She reached back to rub at the base of her neck, fingers kneading the knotted muscles. Her entire body remained tensed, like a housecat gathering itself to pounce. She simply couldn't figure out how to release the weight. But she blew out a hard breath, and shook her head in a way that sent her blonde hair slipping and sliding across her shoulders. "I've learned all this before," she finally explained. Her expression softened the slightest bit, but her eyes remained hard as she smiled ruefully. "I alr

As he spoke, Lessa drifted from one side of his workspace to the other, pausing to study a stack of crystals, or admire the way the light gleamed off the instruments. Moving around seemed to help her remain grounded. Not looking at him kept her from breaking down completely. When Jomei finally fell silent, the woman paused to drag her fingertips across the ledge of his chalkboard. Rubbing the powder between her fingers, she stared out the nearest window. "I like your chalkboard," she told him, lips quirking into a small smile. Though it trembled, she spoke the truth. "It's pretty retro. Y

Slumping forward, Lessa propped her elbows on her knees and dropped her head into her hands. With an almost comical groan, she squeezed her eyes shut. The couch shifted as Jomei took the seat next to her, and she paused to take a long breath, then let it out again. "Thanks," she said finally. The single word weighed heavy with exhaustion, but hints of raw emotion bled through as she continued to speak. "Really, it means so much that you'd be up for listening. I haven't really finished sorting through things myself, so this will probably be incoherent blabbering." She aimed a small, self-deprec

The hard exhale came like a humorless laugh. Finally, the blonde lifted the bottle to her lips and drank deeply. "I wish relationships didn't hurt as much," she muttered once she'd downed half her drink. "I wish I could focus so much on clearing floors that romance didn't matter as much to me." She wedged the bottle between her knees, then made a 'tunnel vision' gesture with her freed hands. "Just forget everything else, and keep all of my attention on getting out of here. It would definitely be easier, wouldn't it?" Lessa's voice trailed, and though her eyes remained on Jomei, it was evident

“I’m really sorry.” It was likely the most cliche thing she could have told him, but she couldn’t seem to find any other words. Besides, it was the truth. She felt her heart breaking for him, and as her gaze held his, she felt the same pain he did. She felt it, because she hurt for her friend. And because she knew what he was going through. ”Breakups are hard,” she stated plainly, continuing her trend of saying the wrong things. “I mean, I think they’re bad anywhere, but they’re kind of worse in Aincrad, I think. Because there are so many unique factors. Most couples don’t have to de

꧁༺Lessa༻꧂ Lessa, The Violet Guardian Level: 31 Paragon Level: 39 HP: 820/820 EN: 114/114 Stats: Damage: 23 Mitigation: 122 Battle Healing: 41 H.M.: 8 HLY: 8 THRNS: 72 LD: 3 Equipped Gear: Weapon: Arcael's Might (T4 THSS - DMG DMG DMG HLY) Armor: Empress Armor (T4 HA - HM HM THNS THNS) Misc: Purple Hair Ribbon (T2 TRINKET - LD3) Skills: Straight Sword R5 He

Lessa leaned forward, resting her chin on Riker's back as she studied Alkor's message. A part of her was surprised that he'd accepted her invitation so easily. She had expected him to ask for details, or to consider the request before answering. In fact, she'd even assumed he might have been busy doing something else. Did this mean that her old friend was beginning to loosen up a bit? Or was it simply that the man loved his rumor chasing? "Ooookay," the woman drawled, closing her eyes as she considered. Now that she had his attention, she was forced to admit she didn't actually know of an

Rewards 38,454 words total. 38454/30=1282. 6 pages. Name Posts (% of Rewards) Tier Bottled Vigor Experience Including Event Bonus & Bottled Vigor Lilik 21 (6/6) 1 2000 10013 Oji 5 (1/6) 1 2000 3335 Nian 12 (4/6) 1 2000 7341 Alkor 13 (4/6) 6 3000 35050

For the first time in a long time, combat had genuine fear climbing Lessa's spine. The second blow may not have hurt much, but paired with the first, her health bar was dipping below 50%. As her blue eyes scanned the remaining points, her fist clutched tighter around the hilt of her sword. Maybe it'll be over soon, she thought, drawing in a deep breath. But she knew she couldn't take the risk. Even as she reached for one of her own health crystals, HP surged back into her bar. Turning to the source, she flashed Ariel a wide smile. Though the expression did not reach her eyes, it was genui

"Thanks!" She called up as Jomei agreed to let her in. She shifted her weight from her left foot to her right, mind racing to formulate some sort of explanation. Surely he was going to ask what she was doing, especially considering how rarely she visited him. It had been months since they had even seen each other. Why now? And why with a six pack of pop? Why didn't I think of this on the way over? She hadn't thought of anything, except to close the distance between herself and her friend. Now she wasn't even sure if he needed the support. Still, she returned his smile as she slid past him

꧁༺Lessa༻꧂ Lessa, The Violet Guardian Level: 31 Paragon Level: 39 HP: 820/820 EN: 114/114 Stats: Damage: 23 Mitigation: 122 Accuracy: 2 Battle Healing: 41 H.M.: 8 HLY: 8 REC: 8 THRNS: 72 Equipped Gear: Weapon: Arcael's Might (T4 THSS - DMG DMG DMG HLY) Armor: Empress Armor (T4 HA - HM HM THNS THNS) Misc: Neutron Star Necklace (T4 TRINKET - ACC ACC REC REC) Skills:

"I'm the shallowest," Lessa replied cheerfully, rocking up onto the toes of her boots as if to emphasize the point. When Freyd mentioned the mayor of Tolbana, she blinked big, blue eyes at him. "Huh," she remarked. "It's surprising that you can remember that sort of stuff. I can hardly remember the details of quests I'm currently on, let alone obscure ones I took ages ago." She paused, then after a beat, added conversationally, "Though if collecting information is your thing, I guess it's not that weird. Just impressive. My old friend, Hikoru, does the info broker thing. He was always rea

She tossed her hand absently. "I've honestly stopped trying to figure Cardinal out," Lessa admitted. "Maybe that's wrong, since analyzing how the game works could potentially give us a hint as to how to beat it. And you know getting out is my main focus. But I've been trying to do that for damn near a decade now, and I'm no closer to picking out any real patterns. At least, aside from the typical, like 'this floor is a desert, so it probably won't rain,' you know?" Recognizing she was rambling, she shrugged. "I guess I just don't see a point anymore," came her conclusion. "We're just driving o

He's doing it for his people? Something inside Lessa softened, and her sword dipped as she dropped her guard. Was there a chance that violence really wasn't the answer? This man had begged them to leave, over and over, and even given them the chance to do so. Was the game capable of producing such tricky boss fights? It certainly wouldn't surprise her. I wonder if there's another way... Those were the exact words slipping through her mind as the king turned his attention on her. Weapons she hadn't even noticed sliced through the air, streaking toward her like heat-seeking missiles.

Time seemed to stop as the first Scather blew. The shockwave moved like ripples from a dropped stone, barreling into the unsuspecting Players. Though Lessa stood a short distance off, and her health bar showed no damage taken, the blast blew her hair back from her face. She let out a small squeak as a gasp caught in her throat, and it took a few seconds before she managed to inhale again. Sweat broke out across her brow, tiny beads slipping and sliding across her temples. Is this what being a Frontliner meant? Watching your comrades be blown up, and waiting for your turn? Her hands trembled in

While Oji spoke, Lessa flashed Hik a quick smile, and a nod of thanks. The steam rising from the cup was absolutely heavenly, hitting just the right caramel and apple notes. She drew in a deep breath, just enjoying the way the sensation crashed over her. Nothing brought her comfort, or took her to her happy place, quite like hot caramel apple cider. The cup was half-way to her mouth when she paused, something Oji had said peaking her interest. She allowed herself a second for her first sip, blew out a satisfied breath, then replaced her cup on the table top. "Age is such a weird thing," s

Lessa wasn't entirely sure what she had been expecting. Learning that she, along with the entirety of Aincrad, had died... well, it couldn't be easy for anyone to come to terms with. She thought maybe he might blow up, cursing the game, its creator, and the harsh reality they never seemed to have any control over. She had seen this anger in him many times before, and knew that it still bubbled just beneath the surface. Try as she may, she had never succeeded in permanently cooling the man's temper. She had prepared herself for the explosion, and the impossibly hot flames that she sometimes sti

꧁༺Lessa༻꧂ Lessa, The Violet Guardian Level: 31 Paragon Level: 41 HP: 780/780 EN: 116/116 Stats: Damage: 32 Mitigation: 142 Accuracy: 4 Battle Healing: 39 H.M.: 8 HLY: 8 REC: 8 THRNS: 72 Equipped Gear: Weapon: Arcael's Might (T4 THSS - DMG DMG DMG HLY) Armor: Empress Armor (T4 HA - HM HM THNS THNS) Misc: Neutron Star Necklace (T4 TRINKET - ACC ACC REC REC)

His response came only a moment later, the chime of the incoming message sending her heart into her throat. She hadn't expected the swordsman to reply so quickly. Truth be told, she hadn't expected him to reply at all, meaning his speedy return caught her off guard. Lessa dragged her lower lip between her teeth, biting down as she read the six words over and over again. She had practically committed the simple message to memory before tipping her head back against the chair's cushion. She stared at the slanted wooden beams that supported her ceiling, gaze tracing them absently as her mind work

Approved!

"I think its a sixth sense," Lessa responded, crouching to scratch Okami behind the ears. She planted a kiss on the top of the wolf's head seconds before he returned to his butt sniffing. "Wolves just seem to really like me. Maybe I should focus on training familiars. Have a whole pack of wolves at my disposal." She was teasing, of course. Besides, as far as she knew, the game didn't even allow for such things. But she smirked when Riker slapped her with a disapproving, unamused stare. She would absolutely put money on the fact her familiar knew exactly what she was saying, and it delighted he