tricolor_mina

The holidays were often really busy for violet... well, most of the time that is. Normally right about now she would be back at rikers edge helping out with a few different community meals, or out in the woods capturing and killing various food-mobs just to get some ingredients, or gathering up some rare plants in order to make some seasonings, and even mushing up fruits and veggies in order to create a variety of different drinks that others could enjoy. She had spent a few hours earlier that day working on a few plates of cookies and a caldron of Ragout Rabbit stew. She hoped that there would be enough so that everyone that was going to be where she was heading could try it out. 

She wanted to be able to enjoy her Christmas with other players, and dammit she was going to do that! Her friends going missing wasn't going to stop her at all, even if she missed them alot. Besides, going to a party meant that she'd get to meet new faces!

Violet made her way to the door, an anxious look on her face as she peered at the sight in front of her. A pair of guys were standing near the door, chatting away. One of them she recognized immediately as a guy she had met a few times before, Koga. She adjusted her coat and cuffs, and made sure her hat was on her head straight, before making her way up the stairs so that she could head inside after the other guy went in. She skipped up to the steps, smiling brightly. "Hi-Hi Koga-san~!" she said cheerily, holding up the caldron of stew in both hands. "I hope you don't mind if I brought a bunch of food items? I wanna make sure everyone has plenty to eat!" Violet bowed respectfully to Koga, before skipping inside, setting the stew on a table, and placing the cookies off to the side. She picked one of them up, and started to nibble on it, looking around Koga's house with a soft smile on her face

Stats

Mina's outfit!

Violet shot forward again, a roar escaping her throat. Now that the gravity of the situation had fully had the time to settle in, she could feel a deep and burning anger in her veins, filling her with an icy chill that was so cold that it burned her. Her weapon seemed to feel the same, the strange sensation that seemed to spring from the blade normally left her feeling giddy and excited, not worrying in the slightest about anything.

But right now, all it did was fill her with the confidence that she needed to beat down something of this level, or at the very least wear it down.

Her feet glowed pink as the charge skill carried her forward, her blade glowing purple with a charged-up sword art, a much louder roar escaping her throat. A blade nearly crossed past her face, her Rapier just barely scraping past the blade to bury itself into the Bosses' shoulder, before drawing back, and using the last vestiges of the skill to put her level with the rest of her team. Violet's eyes flickered up towards the bosses' health bar, a soft sigh escaping her throat. the boss was already down a whole health bar, and was almost at half health now. 

Violet brushed her hair behind her ear, continuing to back up just in case something else happened. Shiina had blown up one of the scathers, the younger girl looking absolutely fucking giddy as she did so. Freyd and his familiar had applied their stun and damage to the boss, leaving the poor bastard looking absolutely punch-drunk. "maa... if I didn't know any better, i'd suppose we were supposed to feel real sorry for this guy.." she said dryly, a deadpan look on her face. "His plan doesn't look like its going at all like he wanted it to. Oh well~"

 

Violet looked down at Jon, a crooked smile appearing on her face. "G'morning, Sunshine~!" Violet purred, her smile widening. Her precious sunshine had come to brighten up her day once again. Akame chirped, before launching herself down at Jon, the tiny familiar excited to see the blond man just as much as her master was. After a few moments of scrabbling at his face, and letting out a variety of chirps and cries, she seemed to settle down around Jon's shoulders, letting out a final, contented, chirp. Violet giggled at the sight. Akame was a nice balance between the warmth of Jon's presence, and the chilly winter of her own. Her little lady was the moon, cool and special, and eagerly poking her head up whenever Jon wasn't there to comfort her.

in all honesty, Akame was a precious blessing that she hadn't even known she'd needed until she showed up. It was easier to live, honestly, with the tiny dragon helping Jon thaw away the chilling pain that had accrued recently... The bittersweet memories of the Ascendants still near-constantly played around her head, making her resent having disappeared from view during such a critical point in her former guild's life. She probably could've saved a few lives by just showing up, and maybe been able to help with the healing afterwards... Maybe then Jon and Itzal wouldn't have gone down such a dark spiral in such a short time. But the aftermath had left the guild gone, reduced to atoms, the vast majority of them either dead, missing, or not speaking to each other for various reasons.

Rosa had gone completely missing, and had resigned as the leader of the Arbiters. Nary an apology or goodbye, she had just disappeared. Violet had panicked at first, but realized shortly afterwards that panicking would only lead to Jon worrying that she was going to get herself hurt again charging in recklessly. He panicked any time something bad happened to her, or any time she'd thrown herself headfirst into a dangerous situation. She didn't want to scare him over her safety, as he was already easy to worry. He was too young to be stressing about her like that. So as much as she was stressed and worried about the safety of her longtime friend, she decided to put Jon first for once, and not worry about trying to play the hero.

Her own hero was standing right in front of her.

Her hand reached down, and she gently brushed the tips of her fingers against his cheek. Deep scarlet met Ocean blue, the color almost hypnotizing. Violet felt her heart nearly skip a beat, a faint blush dusting her cheeks. She could get lost in those pretty blues if she wasn't careful. "Wanna join me up here? Its pretty relaxing to sit in the trees like this, and its a little lonely without you up here with me! Besides, I kinda wanna discuss something with you!" her fingers left his cheek, and were extended in a beckoning gesture now, her other hand patting the branch she was sitting on. She was practically bouncing on the tree, almost with a childish excitement. "C'mon, C'mon! It looks really cool up here, Jon! I want you to see the view too!"

a gentle breeze flowed through the air around the Morning Rose manor, rustling the leaves on the various plants within the surrounding garden. Birds could be heard chirping and trilling to their hearts content, the peaceful morning sun giving off a gentle warmth that made it feel perfect. a peal of laughter suddenly echoed across the grounds, followed by loud footsteps. Violet was running around the garden, inspecting all of the flowers present, and taking in the sweet fragrance produced by each one. Dahlia's, Peonies, Magnolia's, Wisteria blossoms, Cherry blossoms, lilies, and Roses of every color were strewn all along the the beds and tree's, the myriad of colors absolutely mesmerizing.

Violet was wearing a simple white button down shirt, and a flowing pink skirt, a pink and gold shawl draped over her shoulders. She was running around barefoot, giggling as she skipped across some stepping stones. Her hair was tied in a small bun, a few gold-rimmed red roses woven into the band. A loud chirp echoed behind her as Akame fluttered alongside her mad dash across the field. Violet's feet suddenly gleamed pink as she made use of the charge skill to throw herself into the air, her hands grasping at a tree branch. A few moments later, and she was hanging upside-down on one of the lower hanging branches of one of the Wisteria trees, her eyes glittering with delight at being so close to the beautiful purple blooms. "Maa, akame... It's like a dream living here!" she breathed, stroking the tiny dragon. "This place looks like it came straight out of a fairy tale!"

not only did the manor look like it had been ripped straight out of a story book, but so did the person who owned it. Her precious sunshine was what made this house, and this lovely garden, feel like a true home. The halls would feel so cold and empty without his presence, without his warmth to keep her company. Violet nuzzled Akame, a soft blush crossing her face. She was so utterly hopeless, wasn't she? It was times like this where Violet truly felt like a kid again, when she couldn't help but be head over heels for him. And it truly felt as though that bond was requited, and growing stronger every day.

Jonathan Morgenstern, the boy she felt that she didn't deserve in the slightest, who she was utterly and irrevocably in love with. 

Violet took a deep breath, and her eyes closed, the sharp swirl of light vanishing completely with the darkness. Breathe in, breathe out. Don't get stressed, don't get cocky. Her kendo instructor had always demanded complete discipline, even when she wasn't wearing her uniform. Be it on the balance beam, or in a genuine match scrambling for points. Keep calm, don't get cocky...

A blade bit into each player in the other two parties. One by one, each of them seemed to be taking damage from the attacks. one by one their health dropped... and then that blade bit into Jonathan.

Violet exhaled softly, and her eyes suddenly snapped open as she rushed the so-called king, a look of fury on her face. Her sword glowed pink as it dug into his flesh, biting through his armor enough to hurt a decent bit. "I'm sorry, but you're just a shit king. This is so laughable, I almost pity you." Violet murmured, her face dark. "... That being said, I still have to pay you back for beating on my precious sunshine." violet did a dainty little pirouette, spinning for a moment, before casually snap kicking the King in the chin, and flipping away, a bemused smile on her face. The last part was more for style than anything, as it did no damage, and did nothing to him to harm him.

 

Violet smiled brightly as Jon appeared to come and get her, any annoyance at the situation suddenly vanishing from her mind as she stood up, and practically tackled him in delight. She was all to excited to see her beloved sun again. His sunny eyes and hair never failed to make her happy... though that joy was almost shattered by panic when she remembered Shireen's state when she'd been taken. She quickly stomped on that panic as she scrolled through her menu behind Jon's head, breathing a faint sigh of relief that her friend was ok. "Jon!" she chirped, her eyes twinkling with delight. "Jon! It didn't take you long at all, did it!" She nuzzled her face into Jon's shoulder, her grip on him tightening slightly.

Akane watched the pair with a soft smile, a sad look in his eyes. He wanted his sister to actually be happy for once, without having to worry about other things that she shouldn't have ever needed to worry after. Despite any efforts on his or Rosa's part, or even Jon's... she still displayed that fear, that concern. Those emotions that made her all that much more likeable, were slowly burning her out, and making her feelings worsen. His father had always told - well, not exactly 'told' out loud, their father was a mute after all - him that emotions could burn someone up from the inside out.

they could physically render someone incapable of speech, make them shut down because they couldn't process what they were feeling. Everyone had those days, some more than others. Their mother had those days the most, often being unable to speak after several days worth of silence. When he'd seen her like that for the first time at the tender age of fourteen, he'd asked his father what her unmoving, unspeaking state meant. His father wrote down a few words, and circled them. "Depression". "PTSD". "Catatonia".  He'd explained why the first two can cause the last one if it got bad enough, but at the time he hadn't processed it all that well…

The first time he'd seen Violet collapse and fall into that state he'd realized just how serious it was. His own sister was drowning in the same things that their mother was. Hell, after a few years, he'd found he was drowning in those feelings too… shot after shot, time and time again. It hurt to breathe sometimes, and sometimes one drink turned into two, then four, and next thing he knew he was hunched over a toilet the next day, his head spinning violently as his body rejected what he'd done the previous night. Everyone seemed to cope with this kind of thing differently.

Violet formed a shell that protected her soft personality from the harsh realities that she ran into. Blunt, brash, and bold to the point of nearly being suicidal. Rosa was the other extreme, and had fallen into a deep state of depression that gripped her with a tightness that hung around her like a prey animal getting stared down by an Apex predator. It crippled her old personality compared to how she acted now, and had made her bitter and angry with the world. And then there was himself… Glenn being the mask he wore for the sake of other people, the friendly and joyful side of his personality, while Akane was his darker emotions and was where his pain was the most visible. In other words, where he was vulnerable. Where he hated everything, including himself.

… Akane quietly walked over to Jon, a sad look in his eyes. "Take care of her, Jonathan." He murmured, pulling at his scarf. "She loves you dearly… don't take that for granted." He moved away from the blonde man, closing his eyes. Akane pulled out a teleport crystal, before whispering a location, and vanishing in a swirl of blue light. Violet blinked in confusion, her head tilting sideways as she stared at where her brother had been only a few moments before.

*-~-*-~-*-~-*-~-*-~-*-~-*-~-*-~-*-~-*-~-*-~-*-~-*

Olenna looked outraged, before backhanding morg, her eyes watering with outrage. "I LOVE how you frontliners are acting like you're the best things ever!" she spat, her tears spilling over as she practically shook while staring at the man in front of her. "Our problems aren't caused by people like rosa, like glenn... They're caused by power-hungry high levels like you that developed a GODDAMN GOD-COMPLEX! This guild is NOT what you seem to be oh so convinced it is, so for christs sake just fucking listen to us for once. I don't give a damn if you're not scared of me, scaring you has NEVER been the goal of any of us. The shit you've seen throughout your visits? I don't think you understand how much that bitch 'Hidden' outclassed everyone save Rosa, and even she was way weaker than her at the time. You showed up, and took down only a few people, while even Violet was in the middle of the mosh pit, something that I'll remind you, SHE DID OF HER OWN FUCKING VOLITION! We just wanted vengeance for the lives lost, and boss sought out an ally in Hidden, because she wanted someone strong to be able to help us if push came to shove."

She folded her arms across her chest, glancing back at the bar. "Rikers Edge and the Arbiters... we were just an intel guild at one point... just a group of about six or seven people that sought out the unsung secrets of Aincrad." she said bitterly, closing her eyes. "Akane, Ameneti, Pavan, Hakube, Elena, Shireen... all but three of them are... were still alive.. I would assume that Ameneti is probably dead after pulling the same trick twice, probably thanks to the wanderer. None of them wanted any part of what happened, but it happened anyways. Akane still blames himself for not being strong enough to stop what happened to them, and I know Shiri does too... I just, I just don't get it... the only people in this guild that have a kill count are Rosa, Akane, and myself... and all of them were people who wanted us dead. Why are you acting like the rest of them are serial killers, too? Violet respects us, treats us like humans... you on the other hand, deem us criminals, not even worth acknowledging in a polite manner at the bare minimum... but you know what, Jackass? At least I can say I've never had a red cursor, unlike you." with that, she held up a pale blue teleport crystal, before crushing it, and whispering the name of a town, and vanishing in a sparkle of blue crystals, leaving Jon alone in front of the empty bar. Akane had instructed everyone to leave for now, until Rosa had the opportunity to return.

~-*-~-*-~With Violet, Freyd, & Setsuna~-*-~-~*-~

Violet glared up at Freyd, well... more specifically, she was glaring at the phial that he was trying to offer her. it smelled absolutely RANCID. She would rather cripwalk backwards into hell than drink that. "Freyd, no offense, but uh.. " She eyed the phial warily, a frown on her face. "If you made that, I'm pretty sure that's a crime against Alchemy, y'know!?? For christ's sake, use some mallow root or some fucking Ulafish bones, ANYTHING that doesn't make an atrocious potion!" "Or, you can just use an antidote crystal or Purify like a normal person, you know?" Violet jolted as a soft blue glow surrounded her, her eyes training on Her brother, who was shaking his head. "Your soon to be Fiancee threw a fit when Raidou intervened, by the way. You should probably send him a message-"

*DING!*

"... or Reply to the one he just sent, no..?" Violet grimaced, sitting up as she did so. "Alright lets see... "

Quote

From: Tricolor_Mina
To: Morgenstern

Hey Jon! I'm ok, I'm going to be teleporting out in a bit, Akane came to get me. If you want to drop by and say hello, I'm at F: 13, X: +45.19, Y: +22.38. I'm with Freyd at the moment, so I think I'm pretty safe~

"There! Maybe that will keep him calm, yanno?" "Doubt it. He was fairly pissed earlier." Violet stood up, stretching her arms slightly, before shooting Freyd a look. "Its actually fairly normal to get caught up in messes like that on my end, but maybe don't fling me around when you come to 'Save the day?' Its a little annoying for that to happen more than once, dude." Violet continued to stretch, wincing slightly as she shook the stiffness out of her arms.

Violet's eyes went wide as she was suddenly blown back by the explosion of one of the other scathers, the machine blasting both her party and another with damage that bit straight through their armor. She stumbled slightly, shaking her head as she brushed away the sooty mess that now covered her arms. "Oh well thats lovely." she muttered, glaring at the boss, who had finally decided to develop the rest of their health bars. "I guess you aren't an add after all. Make it clearer next time."

She winced when she saw Jon get slammed by the boss with an attack alongside a woman with mousy brown hair. That probably didn't feel too good, in all honesty. The poor woman was likely feeling that blow quite a bit. Violet eyed her rapier, a frown on her face. Was she ready to actually strike at the boss, to strike at something that looked like a human? ... Maybe not right now, but she had to be ready at some point. She did sign up for clearing the floors after all, what kind of clearer would she be if she didn't fight with her new comerades?

 

<<Upstairs>>

Shireen had just been able to finally get some semblance of calm to her, when the player that had pushed her aside stormed into the room, his eyes blazing with barely concealed rage. She felt him slip something in her mouth, an antidote from the color of the phial, before she was suddenly hoisted into the air, the blond man having hoisted her into the air like a ragdoll. His scream of rage as he ranted about how they were causing problems for Mina, and getting her into situations that she should have never been involved in in the first place. something that she should have been able to avoid. She let out a whimper of fear, clawing weakly at Jon's arm, her entire body flooded once more with terror. "N-no.. I-I swear, I never..!" She let out another cry as she was roughly thrown aside, landing harshly on the table next to her bed, and catapulting several recording crystals out of the drawer.

After Jon had spat out a warning, and returned downstairs, Shireen weakly stood up, her eyes watering slightly. The pale pink glow her eyes were giving off brightened slightly as she finally got ahold of another reading for Violet. "You're alive, oh my god you're alive..!" she whispered, a relieved look on her face. She rummaged through her crystal drawer, finally withdrawing a deep blue corridor crystal. She couldn't afford to be afraid of Violet's lover, even if he could snap her neck with ease. She had never bothered speccing into a weapon skill, preferring Leadership and searching to any of that, and just running as the only bona-fide support of the guild. Shireen carefully popped the coordinates into the crystal, a weak smile crossing her face as she did so. She stood up shakily, before suddenly sprinting down the stairs, sliding down the banister with an almost frenzied movement.

<<Downstairs>>

Olenna sat up, a dazed look on her face as the wave of light suddenly swept through the entire building, curing people left and right, herself included. There was a loud bang as the front door was shattered in a spray of pixels, eliciting a cry of surprise from her. Violet's lover had blown the door clean off of its hinges, breaking it into millions of little pieces. She made to stand up as he suddenly tore past the entrance, rushing up the stairs with a look of rage that actually rivalled the looks she'd seen on Rosa and Glenn's faces before. She flinched when she heard screaming upstairs, followed by a crash and someone running back down the stairs. Jon flew past her again, making his way back outside to where the Red Wanderer was standing. She could hear even more shouting from outside as Shireen suddenly slid into the room, stumbling slightly. Her health was in the red, and she seemed unfocused.

"Shireen, what the hell was that..?! Did the guy make you ragdoll or something??!" Olenna hissed, a panicked look on her face. "He-He did, y-yeah... but that-tha-that's not what I came downstairs for!" Shireen stuttered, holding up the corridor crystal. "V-Vio-Violet's gonna be s-so proud of me, don'tcha think, nee-san..?" Olenna let out a low growl of frustration. Shireen was in no state to be wandering around with a crystal clasped in her hands, and running away to go find their mutual friend/teacher. "Gimme a copy of that so I can go there with my crystals. Let Glenn know the Weeper is probably a thing of the past though, especially with the wanderer involved. I'm going out there to go have a talk with the 'Rubacuori' about manhandling fourteen year olds like ragdolls." she growled, a scowl on her face. Olenna scribbled the notes down, before standing up and popping her mask back into its rightful spot on the side of her face. Shireen scurried off to the deck room, sending a message over to Rosa with an Anxious look on her face.

Olenna calmly made her way outside, noting silently that Raidou's eyes had the faintest glint of the tracking skill being active. "Oh good grief." she muttered, before smashing the crystal on the ground at Jon's feet, shipping him off to the location that Shireen had given her. The glowing blue portal was still open, and she calmly jumped through, landing daintily on her feet, not caring how the Blond man had landed, vindicative satisfaction flowing through her as she stepped forward, pointing over at the pair of players standing off to the side. "My little sister went out of her way to track Violet, and your first reaction is to manhandle the one person in this goddamn guild that can't defend themselves? Not a good look for you, you bastard. Get it through your fucking head that we don't ask for this crap, Violet, the boss, and her stupid-ass older brother bring them to US." Olenna stood next to the portal, an irritated look on her face.

<<With Violet>>

Violet blearily opened her eyes, a dazed look on her face. She'd felt like she had been thrown around a bit, and felt slightly dizzy... only to find herself laying on the ground, with Freyd sitting directly in front of her with a Hawaiian Shirt, and for some reason he had a fishing rod in his hands. The paralysis sign was still in her hud, making her groan in frustration. "God dammit." she muttered, giving him a reproachful look. "Why the hell is it that both times I've met you its been because of stupid shit like what happened today?" She squirmed on the ground, when she heard a chirping sound. A few moments later, Akame fluttered over to her, pawing at Violet with a few anxious Chirps. "Hey lil' lady, I guess you ended up okay too.. I'm glad"

<<Upstairs>>

Violets boots clacked against the ground, a soft humming coming from her throat. Her favorite part of the day was when she got to talk with Shireen about how her skills at profiling were coming along. Her own skills back in the real world were nothing to sneeze at, and she adored being able to share it with others. Her neatly-lined catalogs of psychological profiles that she recorded almost daily were always kept in her inventory, with spare sets hidden in her room at the LeBlanc Chateau, and with Rosa, who used them to capture and either kill or jail the more dangerous people that Violet had profiled. The precious audio recordings detailed both physical and mental profiles, ranging from the clothes that they wear to the familiar that they have, and to the people that they associate with.

She was planning on gifting Jon a collection of the ones she had done for the Ascendants. She had one for just about all the ones she had met personally. She thought back to the smiling faces that had been in her memories… and the scratched-off names on that monument. Violet paused on the steps in order to compose herself. She looked downstairs, the door was still slightly open. She shrugged helplessly, it wasn't as much of a problem as most would think. Only players that had express permission could even enter the stairwell, even if the door was open. Unless their name was Morgenstern, then they basically seemed to have a free pass.

She made her way up towards Shireens room, pausing as she heard a strange, raspy sounding moan. She placed a hand on the Rapier at her side, a look of concern plastered across her face. "Shireen..?" She called out, a tentative look on her face as she pushed open the door, only to see the young woman laid out on her bed, and her health badly low. Violet suddenly scrambled forward, her hands glowing a soft bluish white with the First aid skill. "SHIREEN! Stay with me, come on!" Violet grimaced as the skill only brought the girls health up to yellow, when there was the sound of quick, dainty footsteps right behind her. Violet realized with a pang that there was a freshly made tattoo on Shireens throat, of the very same eye that she had just shown Jon and Raidou.

Violet turned slightly, her eyes widening at the small girl that was standing in front of her. Bright gold met Blood red, the tension in the room rising. "So.. a hostage situation, huh..?" She bit out, glaring at the girl. "Hostage situations are so boring! I just want you away from that little wandering spider you found!" Ameneti giggled, a wide smile on her face. "But you aren't silly enough to endanger your friends, are you? Lets go away from here, and have a nice little chat!" "And if I refuse..?" Ameneti opened a window that displayed all four of the Deck members in clear view. "Then you're gonna have a-looooot of blood on your hands~! But if you go with me peacefully, nobody has to die! Pinkie swear on my little heart, and hope to die!" Violet swore under her breath, glancing over at Shireen. The young woman's eyes gleamed with the tracking skill active. Even if violet disappeared, they'd be able to find her.

Situations like this always left a bad taste in her mouth. Violet relented, walking forward to the girl. "Am I allowed to leave a message to them, at least?" She bit out, scowling. "Yup! But not written by you!" Violet opened her message menu, opening it to send a message to Raidou and Jon at the same time. Ameneti cheerfully began instructing her in what she should write

"Can you two come upstairs? I think we made a break in the case. I left the door unlocked, just tell 'lenna and Akane-nii I asked for you two!"

Ameneti smiled, clapping her hands together. "Perfect!" She said, her grin widening. "My little coup-de-grace should kick in any second now, so let's skeddadle!" Violet let out a grunt of pain as the tiny girl suddenly tackled her, forcing a strange bottle to her mouth. Whatever the hell it was, it tasted absolutely foul, the flavor bitter and spicy, and brought about the strongest urge to vomit. Her vision suddenly blurred, the paralysis icon flickering into view on her HUD. The tiny girl caught her as she fell, before she sent a message of her own to Raidou specifically, moving Violets hand to do so through her HUD. "And now one specifically for mister spider himself!"

"Don't leave your friends waiting on you, time is ticking, and there's a life in the balance here!

… oh, and I was after Violet :) Thanks for letting her head upstairs without any issues, Wanderer~"

Ameneti pulled out a teleport crystal, smiling at violet as she did so. "All done! With that out of the way, awaaaay we GO~!" she giggled, disappearing with violet in a spray of blue and silver crystals. Shireen let out a shuddering gasp as the status effects that were ticking away at her life finally faded, leaving her paralyzed instead of slowly dying helplessly. She gritted her teeth, before letting out a loud, bloodcurdling scream.

<<Downstairs>>

Shireen wasn't the only one screaming now. Several of the patrons in the bar had begun to shatter like glass, the small scattering of poisoned meals that Ameneti had spread throughout the building taking course. By the deck room, Olenna collapsed to her knees, her health having taken a massive hit from the poison. She curled up in front of the door, her mask laying off to the side as the black haired woman fought off the tremors that threatened to overtake her entire body. The cacophony of screaming started to make people panic and flee the bar, players streaming out the front door and teleporting out in droves.

Rikers Edge was in chaos

<<Outside the Deck Room>>

Shireen was lazily flicking through the menus of her HUD, humming to herself. Two names had already been crossed out entirely, and the other two were going to be wiped out soon as well. A panicked message suddenly appeared in front of her eyes, and she sighed. The Laughing Coffin was on the move yet again. It was a little sad that the Wanderer talked so much about safety and careful actions, and yet didn't pay attention to the people present. It was far, far too easy for her to sneak into the place that she once knew, and even easier to overpower the young girl that led the scout portion of the Arbiters. Violet eyes briefly turned to yellow, and a smile stretched across her face underneath her mask. The fact that the wanderer and that Frontliner were present wasn't going to be a deterrent, it only meant she needed to be patient. She just needed that boy's sister to be isolated.

She waved over one of the other Arbiters, spade if she recalled correctly, and pleaded for them to trade off with her. The older woman relented after a few moments, a frustrated growl escaping her throat as she did so. 'Shireen' skipped upstairs, humming to herself. As she went further up the hallway to her room, her appearance shifted slowly to a more childlike form. Long lilac hair shifting to a soft, short red color, eyes shifting to a pale gold from their comforting violet. She casually opened the room assigned to Shireen, the real version of her laying prone in her bed, barely conscious. A cocktail of various status effects kept her unable to move, and was slowly eating away at her health. It was too easy to drug the girl with poisoned wine, which was unfortunate. She was hoping Glenn trained them better than that, yknow? The little girl sat down on the bed, giggling at Shireen. "Golly! you're kind of blind, aren't you?" She said softly, smiling at her victim. "you're gonna lay here until I get who I need, and then maybe someone will find you before you fade away! Maybe this will teach Glenny-boy to show you how to check for poisons!" Ameneti was smart enough to know someone would have traced her by now if she let her name be known, so she bypassed the system by drugging her victims with a slow acting toxic poison/paralytic combo. The cardinal always seemed to mark it as a suicide. The little note she always left near her victims always told a different story.

She hummed to herself, tapping her feet against the floor, before forcing Shireen to open her player menu, and her friends list… scrolling right down to Violets name. "check… hmm, let's see.. 'Violet, can you come upstairs and help me with some profiles? I'm in my room upstairs.' Oooh, that sounds only slightly unconvincing!" Ameneti giggled madly before she sent the message, hiding away in the corner of the room with a soft shimmer, leaving Shireen in the bed, the poor girl moaning as her health slowly started to trickle into the red.

Far away, screaming from one of her "Allies" was cut off with a sickening crunch, blue and red pixels flying everywhere as yet another life was ended.

<<Inside the deck room>>

Violet let out a relieved moan, an anxious look on her face. "Kami, I keep forgetting you don't have any social awareness!" She cried, faceplanting into the table. "I don't think I've ever been so glad you missed something, uwaaa! A-and as for me and Akane being siblings, you'd have to pay attention to the little things we do… And know how we acted in the real world." Akane nodded, a tired look on his face. "Agreed. Even Rosa had a hard time of it, and she knew both of us back home. Granted, Violet has pink hair now, but my point still stands." He commented, before turning back to his meal. He didn't feel like talking much anymore, not while there were frontliners in the room… though he did perk up slightly at Raidou's comment. "Its mainly our business thanks to the frontliners being too busy up top to even look at the middle tier players. Rosa and I are at least a solid twenty levels above Violet, but thats hardly even enough to keep up with one of you. Not like it matters, we don't even compare. If you want to make a point, do it in a way that's not going to affect the people you aim to protect. Think about that knife throw from before through Violets eyes. She's not even wearing proper armor, and that knife was enchanted with phase, and would cut through her body like a hot knife through butter. Friend or not, that scares people."

Rosa stood up, stretching her limbs out, a yawn escaping her throat. "Mm.. as much as i want to stay here and get some teasing done, I want to go make sure everything is OK outside." Rosa said dryly, glancing towards the door. "I'll be back in a few hours to a couple days. Glenn, keep an eye out for drugged alcohol." Akane rolled his eyes. "I kinda figured, it is her MO after all. She cried like a baby every time she directly killed someone, so she prefers drugging people to kill them slowly with toxic venom. I better not find you laid out with her fucking call-sign tattooed on you, this guild kind of needs you." "Akane's right, please be careful Rosa..." Rosa waved off their concerns. "Heh… if I die, I die. But people will go looking for me. That being said, keep an eye out for this, you two." She gestured for akane to brush his hair away from his neck, revealing an odd looking tattoo of an eye that seemed to be crying blood. Violet pulled out a piece of paper that had a similar design on it to show Jon "The Weeper marks their victims with this. Dead, or alive. Be careful."

A few minutes passed after Rosa departed when Violet received the message. "Huh.. I guess it must have been time for their trade off then." She stood up, glancing over at Jon. "I'll be back in a bit, Shireen asked me if I could go give her some lessons again. If you need me, I'll be upstairs~" Violet leaned down and gave Jon a quick peck on the cheek, a soft smile on her face. With that, she made her way up the stairs, giving a friendly wave to Olenna, who rolled her eyes with a faint smile on her face. "Have fun teaching the gremlin, Violet."

Violet felt someone nudge her forward, making her stumble slightly. She turned behind her, glancing at the player who had bumped into her. The girl apologized to her, introducing herself as Eruda, the Off-Tank for Firm Anima. Violet filed that information away for later. "Maa... it's nice to meet you, Eruda-san." She said softly, a smile on her face. "I look forward to working with you during this".

A voice suddenly rang out, warning for them to flee, to run away from an apparent danger. Strange fixtures that glowed with a brilliant rainbow light, positioned to the north and east of the boss room, with two other structures that seemingly lacked the same light.. perhaps those were inactive, unlike the other mechanisms.. though the more worrying part was that they were pointed directly at the ceiling. What were they meant to be used for?

Violet heard Baldur call for everyone in the first two parties to start making a beeline for the structures that were still active, in order to ensure that there wasn't going to be any nasty surprises that flung themselves at them from the Boss, should they attack the king while the fixtures were active. Hopefully there wasn't going to be anything too dangerous that sprang from the Boss if they somehow failed.. She sprinted after Baldur, grasping the northern fixture with one hand as she wedged Jack's into one of the gaps in the Scather. "Yo! need a hand, Baldur-dono?" She asked, a wry grin on her face. "Let's bash some Machines!"

N. Makeshift Scather: 19/48 LD
E. Makeshift Scather: 0/48 LD 

Tricolor_Mina | HP: 759/759 | EN: 100/100 | DMG: 29 | MIT: 78 | EVA: 2 | ACC: 4 (FOCUS) | BLGT: 32 | BRN: 56 | FRSTB: 40 | V.D.: 75 | PERPETUATE
   (STM, Rested, AoE Shift, +2 EN/turn [Horn])

The Analysis Records - Violet's Psychology notes (Aka Her friends list)

Written from her perspective

Record # 1: Evac. Relationship: Friends, Status: Unknown, presumed dead...

Record #2: Rags. Relationship: Acquaintance, Status: Unknown

Record #8: Rin. Relationship: Friend, Status: Deceased

Record #9: Itzal. Relationship: Close Friend, Status: Missing

Record #10: Kasier. Relationship: Friend, Status: Deceased

Record #11: Beatbox. Relationship: Friend, Status: Deceased, killed By Death_Adder

Record #12: Kirbs. Relationship: Friendly Acquaintance, Status: Deceased, killed By Pinball

Record #13: Birdie. Relationship: Friendly Acquaintance, Status: Deceased, committed suicide

Record #14: Hikoru. Relationship: Friend, Status: Unknown, but presumed Alive

Record #15: Morgenstern. Relationship: Lover, Status: Alive

Record #17: Mars. Relationship: Mutual Dislike, Status: Missing

Record #27: Rosa. Relationship: Best friend, Status: Alive

Record #28: Glenn/Akane - Heart. Relationship: Brother, Status: Alive

Record #29: Olenna. - Spade. Relationship: Friend, Status: Alive

Record #30: Shireen - Diamond. Relationship: Friend, Status: Alive

Record #31: Kuran - Club. Relationship: Friend, Status: Alive

Record #32: Fengor - Solus. Relationship: Friend, Status: Alive

Record #33: Omori - Astra. Relationship: Friend, Status: Alive

Record #34: Ronan - Luna. Relationship: Friend, Status: Alive

Record #48: Vigilon. Relationship: Friend, Status: Alive

Record #49: Hestia. Relationship: Friend, Status: Missing

Record #50: Baldur - The Gajin Samurai. Relationship: Friend, Status: Alive

Record #51: Alec. Relationship: Friend, Status: Alive

Record #52: Shield - The Unmovable. Relationship: Friend, Status: Alive

Record #77: Ameneti - Weeper. Relationship: Friend Enemy, Status: Deceased - Slain by Setsuna.

Record #78: Raidou - The Red Wanderer. Relationship: Friend, Status: Alive

Record #79: Freyd - The Whisper in The Shadows. Relationship: Friend, Status: Alive

 

Buying 5 Teleport Crystals (5*800= 4000 COL to the Banker)

Accepts Queen's Gambit From Freyd

Violet carefully made her way into the Boss room, an anxious look on her face. This was well and truly the very first Raid that she would be participating in during her time in this world. The invitation from Freyd and Raidou to stand with Firm anima during the fight, something that had shocked her... well, Raidou's invitation had shocked her, Freyd on the other hand essentially dragged her through both a Field dungeon and a Quest without her even realizing it at the time. Jack's Lament Glittered at her side, the blade a pleasant temperature to touch, and her mask was clinging to the side of her face, waiting for her to don it in preparation for the raid. Her hand brushed against the leather breastplate that Freyd had given her, a frown crossing her face. "Well this is sure to be interesting, at least."

She paused for a moment, before suddenly opening her menu to message Jon. After writing it, she smiled, closing the window. She looked around, taking note of how many of their friends were actually present. She could see Baldur and Shield, but they were the only two she really recognized. Everyone else was nothing more than strangers to her. It wasn't that much of a big deal, though. She would get to know them over time, hopefully, and eventually get to be a staple member of the Frontliners. She wanted to make an impact on this place, and was damn sure going to try her best to do so.

Quote

From: Tricolor_Mina
To: @Morgenstern

Hey Jon! Guess what, I'm finally participating in one of the raid bosses! I'm partied with Firm Anima, since they wanted an extra player with them.. well that, and Freyd-san invited me to join them! He even gave me a shiny new breastplate!

Statblock & stats

items consumed

Violet had finally thrown the door open, looking outraged. She was absolutely done with Rosa's crap today, and not wanting to put up with it any longer. She just wanted to bring her friend over, have a friendly meal, and just enjoy her day. Her drink had been drugged, likely by Glenn since Rosa wasn't able to make poison that was strong enough to knock her out. The after effects of it were still running through her system, the edges of her vision a faint purple as she stumbled into the room, before walking over to the table, and sitting down, at the table, giving Rosa a death glare. Rosa simply shrugged, rolling her eyes. "You expecting me to apologize, kiddo?". "Rosa... What the ever-loving FUCK were you thinking?!!?!" She snapped, glaring at her. "DON'T harass my friends, how fucking hard is that?! I invited Raidou for drinks and a good meal, not for you to keep going with your idea of who he fucking is!! I already gave you an analysis. I gave you an analysis for every-single one of your Goddamn persons of interest, and you haven't questioned my thought process yet."

Violet pulled out a crystal, a frustrated look on her face. She was too tired to try and keep her "Happy" mask on anymore. "Look. Just... just quit doing that, dammit. I just wanted some more banter. And to actually enjoy your stew for once... I miss it." Violet felt Jon's hand on her shoulder, and she noticed the piece of cake he'd brought her, a half-hearted smile on her face. "Thanks Jon... Maybe this is what i'm gonna need to feel better after that." Violet's eyes widened with shock when she heard Jon talk about escorting Raidou away, the undertone in his voice catching her attention almost immediately. but before she could say anything...

'T H W I P!'

A dagger suddenly flew past her face, brushing past Jon by a narrow margin. It hit the wall hard, before abruptly shattering against it, a purple immortal object sign appearing in front of where the blade landed. Violet turned to Rosa, concern hitting her. ".. Ro.. sa..?" she whispered, looking visibly shaken for a moment, all traces of her anger locking themselves away as she stared at her friend. "When Raidou meant our time was up, he was referencing our little chat." said Rosa calmly, calmly filing her nails with another blade. "And as for why he's here, Rubacuori, Violet wanted me to cook up a fantastic meal to share with a hungry friend. A fellow frontliner, no? Besides, It's good food, and I'd hate for it to go to waste. He was just complementing the chef, is all." Rosa sent the blade back into her inventory, closing her eyes. The problem with frontliners was that they 

Violet visibly relaxed when Rosa put away her weapon, a relieved look on her face. "Lets cool it a little with the knives, yeah..?" she said weakly, before tugging Jon to get him to sit down, her other hand fiddling with her menu to send out a second plate of the Ragout Rabbit stew, and pushed it over to where he could sit. "And Jon, Just sit down and enjoy some soup. I didn't work my ass off for those rabbits just for you to not get your fill too... One of these days I'm making you come with me to get them." "You don't say.." Violet's head snapped up when she saw Glenn waiting by the door, looking tired. He wasn't wearing his usual getup, instead partially dressed in black, his signature studded Handwraps on his hands. "Let me guess.. You took it out on some player-killers didn't you..?" she asked tentatively, watching him carefully. He normally only wore those when he was beating the everloving shit out of someone that was on Rosa's bingo book.

"mhmm... the Weeper's still sending people to try and tail us. I didn't even make it two feet out the bar before I got jumped by four different guys." Rosa choked on her drink, and made to stand up. "Shit, do I need to start with the alternate routes out again..!?" Glenn shook his head at Rosa's concern, holding up a hand. "Add four to the tally, boss. Just add four to the tally. " Glenn thought back to the situation that had just occured outside, his red eyes narrowing in annoyance. They were more or less just a tedious amount of cannon fodder at this point, He was hoping for an actual fight. "You'd think they'd recognize me at this point, y'know?" "mm... I'll send out the message just in case, I don't want anyone getting kidnapped because we were careless, no? At least you're still cleaning house, red eyes." "I feel like you're breaking a bunch of oaths, Akane-nii.. Like, alot alot." mumbled violet, staring at her food with a deadpan look on her face.

"Maybe I am, but I-" Glenn paused midsentence, looking at Violet with the same narrowed eyes. "What did you just call me..?" he said carefully, folding his arms slightly. "Quit playing stupid, I already knew. You would've gotten away with it for a hell of a lot longer than just a few days, but you slipped up and used sign language Ala Tou-san." she said dryly, a bemused look on her face. "You keep forgetting that A, identifying people was... is, my job. And B, that you literally look just like dad when you do that... and C, you literally carry a picture of mom and dad in that locket you have around your neck." "... I'm more than a little concerned that you aren't freaked over me being the equivalent of a hitman that has a day job as a medic." he said carefully, walking over to the table and sitting down. "maa... I'm more concerned about the people that were waiting for you out there." Violet said dryly. "That's besides the point though, don't take that habit to anyone but a red player... actually, I'd rather you not do it at all, but I can't exactly stop you. Just don't drag my friends into it, please. Alot of them are still kids.. they're too young for this shit. Especially not Tweedle-dee, I don't want my Fiancee getting his hands... dirty..." Violet paused, a blank look on her face. Did she really just say that out loud..? Did she really just say that out loud? Her mouth opened briefly, only to snap shut as a brilliant red flush appeared on her face.

"Is this a good time to say that she was planning to do that, like, three weeks from now..?" mumbled Rosa, a sweat drop rolling down her face. "Dammit, now I owe both Mujo and Olenna money... As ditzy as ever, hm?"

Trading <<Cluster of Stars>> to @Shield :0

Violet smiled faintly, brushing her hand against Jon's face. "You didn't even say you were going to visit today, I missed you..!" she laughed, nuzzling her face into his body. "Rosa made some Ragout stew today, and I invited someone over to enjoy it! He seemed to like her cooking after.. all..?" she blinked in confusion, realizing that they were in her room at the tavern, and not in the Deck room. She looked over to the side, to see a rather stressed out looking heart, his hand glowing a faint blue from what was apparently the purify skill. Her eyes narrowed in confusion and concern, her demeanor instantly changing to an angry one. "Glenn for fucks sake, we had this discussion already, Raidou isn't-" there was suddenly a flurry of hand movements, Glenn scowling fiercly at Jon. "Rosa Demanded it. I'm leaving before I deck your fiancee across the face. Ciao, Violet." Sign language, something must have happened for him to resort to that. Glenn had stomped off, most of the patrons getting the hell out of his way before they were subject to any misplaced anger. Glenn was too annoyed to care right now, he was not getting yelled at by two children in one day. "This day is just getting worse, the nerve of that guy.. and that guy in red... "

Violet quietly bonked Jon over the head, annoyed. "The hell happened while I was out? Never seen him do that before, let alone using ASL instead of JSL." she said grumpily, staring at Jon with a frustrated look on her face. She was out of the loop, and she very much hated it. "mmk, that's enough being lazy for me today. I'm going to go tear Rosa a new one for this, I can't believe she'd go behind my back and mess with my new friend like that! I told her he's a good guy!" she hopped to her feet, scowling now. She stomped over to the door, yanking it open, and made her way over to the Deck room. She moved Olenna out of the way, before Slamming her fist down on the main part of the door. It was locked, and by Rosa herself it seemed. They still would have heard the resounding 'B A N G!' Though, along with an angry roar from Violet as she continued banging on the door.

Back in the deck room.

Rosa leaned back in her chair, a sigh escaping her throat. It was just her luck, honestly. This was a losing battle, but not for her. That boy assumed that she was the one that could understand him, that could comprehend his motives the best. He was a white piece playing double agent in this game of chess. To the point of actually denying himself happiness in his life. "Don't kid yourself, boy." She spat, her face filled with bitter anger. "A life without the wonders of joy, without happiness. That is merely existing. To live, you have to experience it all. Pain, sadness, grief, rage, excitement, fear, joy, relief, these things make us whole. You know the gravity of the road you tread? You're just trying to justify yourself, to make it seem like you know it."

Rosa shook her head as he went on about how Violets image of him was flawed, fractured from how it should truly be. That his path couldn't be changed any further from where it already was. That Violet was as pure as he claimed. She set her mug down, before looking Raidou dead in the eyes. "You didn't see her raging that night." She said calmly, folding her hands under her chin. "While she hasn't told me what happened herself, I heard it from one of her buddies at the station. Eighteen people. She killed eighteen people, out of a murderous rage. Rage that felt justified. She was never pure in the state that you know her. That event changed her permanently. She's oh so quick to anger, now. Even mild annoyances making that same sensation bubble to the surface. You claim I'd understand you? She's gone further down it, and is willing to go further for the sake of another. That king on the board you're trying to protect? It would sooner surrender itself than allow its comrades be taken away. Surely you've seen her play? Even the slightest hint of white losing is enough for her to withdraw her king. She'll go down with the enemy if it meant the safety of her friends. You still have the chance, why not take it?"

The banging on the door made Rosa look up, and she smiled faintly. "Ah.. she's awake. And pissed too." She said dryly, before downing the rest of her sake. "Raidou, you assume you've got a foot in the grave before you're even ready. And you assume that I am willing to play on your board, unknowingly without some sort of deal. I only want two things out of you, kiddo… firstly, I want you to try and live. Keep your plan going, but instead of shouldering it on your own, let people help you. Two or three heads work far better than one, after all. Second, take off the mask you keep putting back on from time to time. Nobody likes to be afraid, or let their more volatile emotions out on display, but that's just a natural part of life. The boy you claim is gone is still there, you're just drowning him in suffering, grief, and rage. You just haven't realized it yet. You can do it in stages if you'd like, that's OK. But try it at the very least, thats all I'd like to see. Just anything other than the paltry showing you've given me just now."

Violet approached Kuni, a soft smile on her face. She loved it when there were younger NPCs, especially around the times where there were holidays that were mainly oriented around children. It made the events all the more cheery and fun, despite the world that they were trapped in. She carefully poured twenty of her pumpkin seeds into the collection basket, before pointing at a small bottle of stars. "is it OK if I have that one? I'm buying it for a friend of mine~" she asked kuni, smiling when he brought her the bottle. "thank you! I'll be back later with lots more of these!" Bottle of stars in hand, she made her way back home, humming to herself.

Turning in 20 seeds!

Link!

Glenn let out a shaky sigh at Jon's reaction, shaking his head. "The kid mentioned something that royally pissed Rosa off." He said tiredly, rubbing his temples with a free hand. "I'm glad she sent me out here, I don't want anything to do with that, it felt like getting stared down by a pair of alpha predators when you're alone in the woods without a weapon to defend yourself. It was fucking terrifying." When Jon joked about him following the pair out of the room like a lost puppy, he glared at him. "Don't even joke about that, that's my little sister!" He said quietly, glancing away. "Rosa just wanted me out of there so she could talk to that guy in private. This guy is someone she's wanted to corner for a while, but she hasn't had the opportunity to until, out of fucking nowhere, the lil shit drags the guy in here, with a tainted Reindeer as a gift. Rosa tossed it to me so I could check it over. Damn thing was filled with sleeping toxin."

When he heard Jon ask if it was the guy's fault, Akane shook his head. "I did it so we could have our conversation without interruption. That, and Rosa was worried that the tone would have her freaking out. You saw how sour it turned." His hand glowed slightly, and he turned to Jon with a narrowed gaze. "And don't you dare tell her who I actually am. She doesn't know, and she's probably better off not knowing I'm in here with her, trapped in a death world." The glow intensified, and Violet blearily opened her eyes, a dazed look on her face as she glanced up towards Jon. ".. oh hello..! Ooh, I'm sleepy still.. what was in that stuff..?"

In the deck room.

Rosa hummed to herself, her smile still playing around the edges of her lips. "Make it clearer next time, Moccioso." She said softly, shaking her head. "The phrasing of how it was said was insinuating, but I can see you only had good intentions. Or rather, I'd hope that was all there was in those words." She took a drink from her glass, watching him carefully through half-lidded eyes. The boy in front of her was too young to be saying things like that. 

When he mentioned the loss of her husband, and his apologies for it, she simply shook her head. "Declan led me to her, and I'll forever thank him for doing that. That precious girl saved me when he died, but I failed her badly. I failed her real bad." She set her mug down, glancing at her inventory, looking through a small list of crystals, before finally finding what she was looking for. A deep Red recording crystal, labeled ; 'Analyst record #78: Raidou-kun.' She materialized it, and set it down on the table right in front of her.

When Raidou spoke of the losses he'd experienced throughout his time here, she leaned her head down, a solemn look on her face. "And my apologies for your losses." She said softly, before reciting a softly-spoken prayer. "May they find peace in the afterlife, Raidou. And may you someday find peace of your own." She watched him drink from the ash-smelling cup, taking note of the color and texture of the teacup.

Then, for a split second, Rosa could feel a sharp bloodlust, directed at the person who had killed her husband, like a snake ready to coil. The amber eyes of the boy had flickered red out of barely restrained bloodlust… then within mere moments, the bloodlust faded, caged once more. A few moments after he finished his rant, she started chuckling, her smile from earlier turning feral. "Bold of you to assume that they were alive long enough to ever even make it to this world." She sang, a delighted look on her face. "I revelled in every blow, every splash of blood and grey-matter that splattered across my hands and face. I drank in the rage I felt back then, the thrill of beating them to bloodstained heaps of flesh covered by clothes. A rage that, while justified, was oh so Childish. There are repercussions to doing something like that, Raidou. Grave ones that leave you dead and empty, and craving that pain you just dished out til it drives you mad. And one by one, you lose the ones you care for, all of them too disgusted by your behavior to want to know you."

Rosa picked up the Recording crystal, a deep sigh escaping her throat. "And yet there is always someone who can somehow see right on past that. See you as a good person." She continued, closing her eyes. "Bruised and bloodied, she still liked to see the good in others. The accident that stole away her eye? She was more worried about the other driver, worrying if they would be okay despite her own rather severe injuries, and their lack of any. Motorcycles always lose a battle against a full on car, after all. The other driver was a bastard that didn't care about her, and was just bitching about how she ruined his car. Didn't give a single fuck about her, and I can still remember seeing Declan take great pleasure in arresting him for nearly killing an off duty police officer by running a red light."

Rosa shook her head one last time, meeting the young man's intense gaze. "Her job in the real world was analytical psychological profiling, something that she was absolutely brilliant at." She said calmly, fingering the crystal again. "As a way to make sure her skills didn't drop off and wither, she's recorded profiles of people based off of any encounter she has with another player. She did one for each of her friends, and she did one each for every member of this guild… she also made this one for you. And it interested me when I heard it, so I think you'll find it rather interesting as well." Rosa tapped the crystal, setting it to play.

There was static for a few moments… then. "Uaaah! C-can you hear me..? U-um, uh… 'SCREECH!!' Eep..! Heesh, OK. I was too close!" It was Violets voice, filled with a nervous tenor. "Ne, ne… This is... number 78 of the analysis record. Let's see… ah! I'm on Raidou-kun today! Let's see… long brown hair, deep golden yellow eyes set behind a pair of square-framed glasses. Average height and build, plain features. Has a familiar named Juiblex, a weird lil oozey critter that kind of reminds me of a slime. Apparently it liked the Teriyaki sauce Rosa managed to make, i'll definitely get her to make some for the lil guy when Raidou comes and visits!"

Violets voice had changed to an upbeat, confident tone, unlike the one she usually used in this world. Any of her usual snark vanished in the face of her cheery optimism. "Ah, let's see… He seemed kind of withdrawn..? It took a minute for me to get a good read on him, he was really really quiet. His sense of humor.. heesh, it was like he'd never heard a joke before! It was almost clinical with how he responded, so I thought he was a sociopath at first!" There was a shuffling sound, and a faint chirping in the background. "Uwaaa?! Akame be careful, I'll play with you in a minute! Ok, what else. Oh, yeah! He looked really young, too! Probably only around Jon's age, maybe just a teensy bit older by like a year or two. It's nice to meet people closer to my age here, everyone else is so young… but this is an RPG, so I expected that at least! Anyways, once I actually got him talking, I noticed that there was an undertone of kindness in his words, but it was super faint in comparison to everything else."

There was another shuffling sound. "I was really happy, you know. He seems like a good guy!" Violet said, her tone full of joy. "The only thing that worried me was that lethal-feeling killing intent I felt when I mentioned what happened to Declan. It wasn't even directed at me, and I felt like a snake wanted to bite my head off! Spooky stuff, and I didn't expect it at all! He's so young, but to have that much anger inside of him… that, that kind of worries me a little..! Raidou-kun is also really, really smart. He even has a book full of names and notes, kind of like what I've done with these crystals! And he was constantly trying to look for information, despite not really understanding how to go about doing so. I gave him a small push by starting up a game of questions, something we both enjoyed! I've wanted to have someone other than Rosa that can give my brain a nice workout for a long time, so it was refreshing! He even caught me off guard with a few questions.. I loved every second of it!"

"In short, I find Raidou to be a sweet kid that has had a rough time in life. He seems to be holding some kind of grudge that shows in his day-to-day speech, as well as his face. But above that, he's someone I'd like to get to know better! I hope he keeps trying his best in life, and that he can let go of all that pain one day, and be happier! I want to be around for that growth, so I can make sure he doesn't suffer like so many others that I've met!" The crystal whirred for a few moments, before shutting off, and Rosa sent it back into her inventory.

Rosa smiled daintily, leaning her chin on one of her hands. "She thinks pretty highly of you, Raidou. That's not the kind of praise she hands out lightly."

Akane opened his mouth to respond, when Rosa's glass shattered violently in her hand, to the point of causing herself physical damage. The bright red pixels painted across her hands, leaving deep red marks across her hands, which were shaking with rage. As he looked up, he realized with mute shock that Rosa's eyes had become dark with pure fury at Raidou's comment about what had Violet so torn up. About why they were such close friends, even without being friends in game. It was Taboo to bring it up unless Violet was out of the room, or in private where they both could sit there crying together... those days were by far the worst ones.

The door suddenly opened, Rosa's head snapping up, watching the newcomer like a hawk. It was only Morgenstern, The boy that Violet had set her eyes on. The one that was actually able to make her happy these days. He snarked to Rosa about not inviting him over for Ragout night, something that was lost on her ears thanks to the state she was in, before leaning down and picking Violet up. Akane let out a soft sigh of relief, thanking the boy silently for taking Violet away from the room. As Jon exited the room, he heard a shaky sigh come from Rosa, the woman's rage-filled tremors slowing slightly. He looked over at her, a look of confusion on his face.

"The Rubacuori just saved your ass, Glenn. Get out of the room." she said softly, smiling faintly despite the amount of barely concealed rage in her voice. "Rosa, please think this through, I-" "I. Said. Get. OUT." Glenn shakily stood up, before bailing out of the room, not wanting any part of whatever was going to happen in a few moments. He hurriedly followed Morg to wherever he had decided to go with Violet. When he caught up, his face was tense, and filled with anxiety and fear, and his breathing was uneven and shaky.

Rosa calmly laid a hand on the table, drumming it with one of her hands, watching Raidou with darkened Rage. She let out a soft chuckle, before finally responding. "My husband." she began, looking up at the wanderer with darkened eyes. "My husband was killed right in front of that girl, he died right in her arms, his blood coating her face and body. I've never asked her about what else happened that day, I just know that she wakes up screaming and crying, and asking why it was him instead of her." Rosa took out another glass, this one made out of metal instead of simple glass like the one she had been holding earlier. This one, however, had deep, finger-shaped grooves on it, that matched her hand perfectly.

"You make assumptions, wanderer. Warranted assumptions, but assumptions nevertheless. " She said carefully, pulling out another bottle. "I don't think I can remember the last time someone's ever accused me of something like that, which is impressive on your part. So let me make something VERY clear to you." For a split second, it was as though her eyes had flashed a deep red color, a predatory light coming from them. "If I die, Violet and that boy out there will know, they will know it was you, and you'll fail that poor girl in more ways than one. I know you want her safe, but your idea of 'Kindness' is going to make her miserable. Is it kindness to force someone to be happy? To make them play pretend and smile as though they believe that nothing is wrong, to pretend to play the role of the fool?" She poured herself a drink, shaking her head as she did so, her eyes returning to normal.

She took a deep drink of the alcohol she had poured herself, savoring the bitter taste and burn of the drink. She sat there silently for a few moments, allowing the liquid to calm her slightly. The bitter taste always brought her back to a certain degree. "Ah… much better. " she said softly, setting the mug down. "Bit strange to be drinking Sake out of a mug, but I'd probably break another glass if I picked one up. Let's not accuse each other of stupid things, Wanderer. I prefer to have civil chats with people, not fight them for foolish reasons that could have been avoided." Her voice was still angry, though it was decidedly less pronounced than before. Throughout all of this, her face still carried the faintest trace of a smile, despite her sheer fury.

Violet was still shaking slightly, though the majority of her tremors had calmed down for the most part. It wasn't his fault, or anyone else's. It was just phantom pain, phantom memories that left a sharp ache throughout her body. Though the cardinal dulled it after a few moments, it kept coming back in waves. She finally managed to steel herself enough to actually calm down, and she shook her head at Freyd's question as to what happened. "It was an accident in the real world, not something you did." she said tiredly, tugging her sleeves down to hide the scarring that overtook her arm. "It... wasn't very pretty, and I was hurt. hurt real bad." a hand traced her face, brushing at her skin, and removing a slight amount of the salve she had started to apply to her face.

How Rosa and Glenn had come up with the idea of making a salve set that could be used as a concealer, she wouldn't ever understand, but they'd figured it out for her sake. The sharp, patchy scars on her face stood out like a beacon on her pale skin, the angry pink and reds marring the skin that had been made visible from underneath the salve. "It was... really weird, when I first used NervGear... It was so strange to see with both eyes again." she mumbled, shaking her head slightly. "I'd completely forgotten what it was like.. but I still feel much more comfortable with my eye covered, its too weird sometimes.. and sometimes it brings back... bad thoughts.. really, really bad thoughts..."

Violet entered the door, carrying a bundle of cloth that housed a pair of Rapiers within. One a burned, charred black blade that emanated shadows and warmth, the gem on its end gleaming a burning red color. The other a cerulean blue crystal, elegantly carved into the shape of a blade, the guard a pale white steel, with a deep blue sapphire placed within the pommel. She looked to griswold, an anxious look on her face. "Freyd told me to come here... he said you could help me out..?"

Item Merging:

Item Name:  Jack's burned Lament
Item Tier: 4
Item Type: Rapier
Item Enhancements: Blight/Burn/Cursed
Description: A pitch black rapier detailed with golden scales near its hilt. The pommel of the weapon is decorated with red and purple gemstones that glow when their enhancements proc
Link: Lonk

and 

Item Name: Sliver of Silver
Item Tier: 4
Item Type: Rapier
Enhancements: Bleed, Para, Frostbite
Description:  A needle-like cerulean crystal blade mounted on a white steel hilt with guard, adorned with a brilliant sapphire in the pommel.

Acquisition ID [195932c] | Roll ID: 200672, 200673, 200674; Reroll IDs: 200675, 200676, 200677, 200678

= 

Item Name:  Jack's burned Lament
Item Tier: 4
Item Type: Rapier
Item Enhancements: Blight/Burn/Frostbite/Cursed
Description: A pitch black rapier detailed with golden scales near its hilt. The pommel of the weapon is decorated with red and purple gemstones that glow when their enhancements proc

Accepts the Silver of Shiver

Silver of Shiver +4 (T4 Perfect Weapon (Saber) - Para 1, Bleed 1, Frostbite 1)
Acquisition ID [195932c] | Roll ID: 200672, 200673, 200674; Reroll IDs: 200675, 200676, 200677, 200678
A needle-like cerulean crystal blade mounted on a white steel hilt with guard, adorned with a brilliant sapphire in the pommel.

Rosa's eyes narrowed slightly as she took a deep drink from her glass, her hand nearly breaking the glass as she held it. Glenn had let out a barely repressed snarl, looking like he wanted to leave the room after hearing Raidou's accusation. His own glass hadn't been as lucky as Rosa's, and had actually shattered it entirely, the polygons flying around everywhere. Rosa held up her free hand, still drinking from the cup. Glenn seemed to get the message, but that didn't make him any less angry. "What kind of bullshit is this." he hissed, glaring at Raidou, his friendly demeanor disappearing completely, and the faint french accent to his voice completely dropping from his voice. "Rosa and I knew her in the real world, you really think either of us would harm someone who is literal Family to us?!"

"Akane. I said cool your heels." she said calmly, her expression still relatively calm. "Violet, or Mina as she probably introduced herself to you as, Is safe here. I would have multiple players after my ass, Glenn and Morgenstern included, if I let someone hurt or kill her. And my husband would haunt my ass for the rest of my days, too. Not that he doesn't already, though, I know he haunts her too." She set her empty cup on the table, and breathed a sigh of frustration. "You having the balls to even so much as Assume that we are a danger to her is impressive. And I applaud the fact that you're saying that to someone who has a tie to her, forged in the blood of family. Especially considering that they're sitting right next to you."

Glenn's face darkened even more at the mention of familial bonds. "Don't you dare tell her, either. She wouldn't want me around to begin with, I didn't visit her at all, after all." he spat, a bitter tone to his voice. "She's happier without the extra fucking reminder, and I'm happier being on the sidelines so I can watch her grow, even if It hurts me to do it. But the fact that YOU have the balls to roll up here, and ask us if we're planning on killing people for no fucking reason, thats what's pissing me off. You know who we are, sure, but do you know the people behind the characters? Our prior relationships?"