Arabelle

The woman with silvery hair - Kat - and the other woman in dark clothing had quite the cute contrasting personalities. The former was serious and very focused on the task at hand, while the latter gave off the impression of a very cheerful, lively person. And she was fine with either of them... until "Kat" walked off without allowing the team any time for introductions. The sprightly woman followed happily, leaving Arabelle to linger behind with the tall, armored man who she assumed was the other guy in the party.

Wow, rude. Not even Mishiro had it that bad. Didn't she know the importance of having a sense of unity? 

"The guy from the bar, right?" Arabelle had a mischievous little smile as she looked up at the armored guy she recognized as Edgy McEdgeFace from that bar fight in the New Years. It was difficult to forget a colorful character like him, and his distinct horned helmet. "Wasn't expecting to find you here."

The small purple-haired girl didn't give any further comment as she ran to catch up. She joined the party and had a decent guess at their names. It seems that Kat really knew where she was going - Arabelle had been planning to helpfully point them to the coordinates she knew of if they deviated from the path - and after a few warning caws from Symphony's raven, the boss arrived. It was cute, bouncy, and floofy. The little clouds surrounding it almost made it seem like it was floating off the ground. She - very inappropriately for the situation - wanted to drop her scythe and hug it. And bring it home as a familiar. But she quickly snapped out of that line of thought and followed after Symphony.

"Gals don't appreciate men who cut off their words either," she commented with a smirk. "Really, why leave us hanging?"

She stayed back a bit to get a hold of the situation and listened to Symphony's and Katagawa's words. Don't aim at the floof. The stiff lady tanks. Easy enough. Arabelle followed Katagawa's stun attack with a quick slash of her scythe. Its blade glowed a bright green as she activated her strongest Sword Art... and promptly faltered as the system began to guide her body through motions she's never attempted before. Every movement seemed to guide her away from her designated target, and she quickly found herself growing disoriented.

Not good. 

The small purple-haired girl interrupted the sequence and paused a small distance away to regain her composition.

--Arabelle had a brighter smile than usual when she pulled back. She backed away, quickly turned around and stepped out of the alley and into the town with a wave. They called out after her. "Stay safe. I'll see you later!" "Yeah, later. Don't be late." She resisted the temptation to turn back and didn't stop walking, even as she pulled up her menus and scrolled all the way down to where her battle attire was stored. Her form briefly shimmered white as her casual clothes were replaced by a black military-like uniform with green details along the cuffs of her long sleeves and the folds of her short skirt. With her small height and the rigid appearance of her armor, she must have looked like a young teenage girl playing soldier. Except - she maybe wasn't. She manifested a scythe that was much, much larger than her, and players had to move out of the way as she easily twirled it between her fingers. With her other hand, she pulled out a vial from her inventory and doused her weapon with its contents. She then placed it at the scythe sheath on her back.

Almost as an afterthought, she turned around to the players she had disrupted and gave a cute smile. "Sorry~!"

The scythe-wielder reached the town gates and her ears perked up at the sound of someone discussing a "boss." The Easter boss. That seemed to be the only talk these days; her best friend had gone out on a quest with her usual party (minus Arabelle) just a few days ago. She chose not to accompany them not because of a conflict, but moreso 'cause she simply wanted a change. Some change. It was boring hanging out with the same people and the annoying Other Girl all the time. Arabelle wanted to get out and meet new people like she always did before she joined the guild.

She approached the most interesting pair just as a white-haired woman passed them.

"Well~, she has a point. That thing's not gonna be around for long, you know?" Arabelle gave the two of them a friendly smile. "You guys need another member? I'm looking for a party to take it with."

Arabelle entered the shop and gave a dismissive wave at whatever apology or excuse the pretty shopowner had for her. "It's fine. You probably just ran out of mats, right? Well... I still won't be paying 'til the order's done." She browsed the rest of the trinkets they had in stock with a smile though compared to her usual this one was completely, absolutely, obviously - fake. "I did just that with another artisan. I don't know what happened to them, but next thing I know, their shop was closed. No refunds, either. Well - " The small, purple-haired girl found an item that somewhat fit into her current build and allowed it to dangle from her fingers. She traded over her Col. "I hope you understand~!" The same way I'm being understanding with you for months now.

"Contact me when that item's done. See you~."

"I am so sorry! I was planning to pick up all of my orders from this smithy and some other shop on the same day, but the other shop hasn't even finished my order yet, so I just forgot." The small purple-haired girl clapped her gloved hands together in an apologetic gesture and gave a cute smile. Arabelle quickly brought up her trade window and sent the long-due payment over, and once the transaction was done, she took a few steps back from the counter to admire her new scythe. It was just as pretty as her last one, and just as easy to wield, too. "Lovely as always. Well, you've got the Easter boss to thank for reminding me. You're taking it too, right? Good luck on your quest~."

--And trailing after him was a woman dressed in red. She folded her hands behind her back and remained silent, scrutinizing the very few weapons on display. Her unblinking, pupilless red gaze was turned to a large battle axe leaned against the wall, and to both men present, she was just another customer browsing through the selection. Her senses were sharpened. Focused on the man behind her. Listening. When he left, she turned to the shopkeeper and offered him a smile. "Fione will take this one." She was a dainty-looking woman, with a pretty face framed by violet hair that fell past her elbows, but she picked up the large axe with no difficulties. "Quite the smart move, setting your prices this low. It's more accessible to the players who don't have the money for the weapons other shops sell, and you at least get some money back from what is otherwise considered a failed craft."

As she spoke, she glanced over the price list. Six mats would be... one rare weapon.

Curious. How curious.

She didn't open a trade window, instead manifested her Col as a bag of coins and firmly placed it on the counter.

"This is a nice shop. Keep it open."

She placed her new weapon in her inventory and strolled out of the shop.

Despite his assurances, Pinball did not get it. Lovely. Arabelle picked up the steady flapping of wings from behind her and the unmistakable whoosh as that one last annoying quest mob glided through the air once more, heading straight for the only person who had managed to hit it so far.

This would forever be known as the day best girl Arabelle outperformed an experienced frontliner(?) in combat!

Hey, DMG stats don't count, she at least hit it when she wanted to. But she didn't have the time to gloat. Another round of 'oh sh*t's ran through her head, and the small purple-haired girl pushed forward in a sudden burst of speed. 

It still wasn't fast enough. The Giant Bat caught up to her and swooped down. A numb sensation spread from her shoulder to her back as the mob's fangs dug into her. It grabbed at her with its talons, tried to keep her still as it tried to bite down deeper, but Arabelle wasn't having it. "Get... OFF!" She slammed the blunt end of her scythe against the ground and spun, pushing - slamming her back (along with the poor bat) against the wall. It screeched in complaint, its claws loosened, and she pried herself from its grip.

Arabelle paused to smooth down her skirt and give a meaningful glance at her teammate. HP dangerously close to the yellow zone (which wasn't much, considering her level), and low energy. The small purple-haired girl turned around and kept running.

Deeper into the darkness of the cave.

Nearly killed someone. Then the guy he was inspired by threatened everyone(?) and went poof. Okay. Lovely. Somehow, she couldn't picture someone as nice as Stryder going through that, but then again, that applied to most people. They hide their problems behind smiles and you'd just be surprised by what you find when you get past the surface. Anyway! This was not a conversation to be had in the middle of a date, though Arabelle did ask for it. She was certain she wouldn't pry any further at this moment. That was just one dumb way to kill the mood.

"Mine?" Arabelle followed her date to a table by the window. He pulled out a chair for her, like the charming gentleman he was♡ and seated himself across her. "Hmm..." The small purple-haired girl swung her legs and stalled. She reached for the menu at the center of the table and aimlessly flipped through the pages. They had a surprisingly wide and equally intimidating selection of dishes. What was this stuff? She didn't even know what half of these names meant! "Oooh, they have the best-selling ones at the front!" The excitement was evident in her tone as she lowered her menu and indicated the section with a gloved finger. "How about the one for two. You know~ the one labeled the 'Couple's Special.' I mean, unless you have any better ideas?"

But, it was rude to leave him hanging. Really. Really. Rude. If he answered her first question, she should answer his, too.

"About that guy, I haven't seen him in two years." Arabelle propped her elbows on the table and held her usual smile. "But, he's probably still alive! ...I think. He's not the type to fight in a losing battle." 

For a girl who was talking about an ex(-friend?), she was surprisingly nonchalant.

"But anyway..." Arabelle pushed the menu back to the center of the table, like she was physically pushing the issue away from her. The small purple-haired girl thought for a moment. "Let's focus on the present. What do you do aside from leveling?"

"Keep my distance...? Don't worry your pretty little head over it. I won't try to get that close. Why?" Arabelle pressed a finger to her lips with a conspiratorial wink. "It's a secret~." 

Having wandered a bit deeper into the forest with her unlikely companion, the small purple-haired girl innocently plucked a white flower from a thorny bush and twirled it between her fingers. 'I'm not sure if I like her,' 'I don't not like her,' was just as good as a maybe. A maybe leaning on a yes. Which meant there had to be something that made it possible for him to not utter a straight no. Or maybe he was just trying to get a nosey stranger off his back. But, anyways, she was sure it was the former! No one would even think of lying to a nice, cute girl like her.

He was a decent guy. Closed off at first and somehow always found a way to make something depressing, but not entirely apathetic. He was honest, almost brutally so, and didn't seem like the type to break a promise. Or make girls cry. Ahem. Arabelle was only thirty percent sure, but this guy deserved Arabelle's Seal of Approval❤︎! Thirty was a low percentage but it was always better than a negative one hundred, so -- she never once doubted that this ship was totally hopeless. Nope. Definitely not! Arabelle dropped the small flower into her inventory.

Here's where it starts to get a bit more complicated. Onto agenda no. 2: somehow making them realize what they actually feel.

"So... wanna talk about it? You don't need to do any name dropping or anything." -- Because she already knew. Arabelle, you clever, clever bastard. She picked up the pace and walked alongside him, intentionally keeping a few inches of space between them. "...or you can not say it. Don't look at me like that. I've always been a nice person, you know! I know how difficult these kinds of stuff are, so it's all good. But since we're a long way from finishing this quest, how about I tell you mine? Learn from it or something, kouhai-kun~."

She dropped the nickname with a sugary smile and paused to file through her memories. Who should she talk about this time, she wondered. Eenie meenie miney moe... "There's this one person. I've known him since the start and... he's the type of person I never thought I'd end up being close to!" Arabelle folded her arms, giving her a cross but cute expression as they walked. "Like, the terrible combination of being stubborn at the worst moments, and a pessimist, and being too emotional. But, well..." She tucked her hands behind her back and walked a few paces forward, facing away from Huginn. "He knows how to cheer me up. Long convos, scented candles, sweets, and all. And I liked being around him, so I went ahead and brought it up with him."

Her boot sent a pebble sailing into a nearby bush.

People were always more likely to share something when you tell them about yourself first. It's called a show of trust.

"...I like calling him mine."

Arabelle carefully maintained her innocent smile as they went along their way.

[@Huginn]

There was a Valentine's fair in Taft's teleport plaza. Much like the Christmas Extravaganza, it only opened once a year, for a week at a time. Every year featured new additions, with one of the major attractions only being added in the previous year: an event-limited quest with the extremely cliche name and concept of the <<Tunnel of Love>>. It was back again this year, with less rewards but somehow more eager quest-takers... if the long line was any indication. "Aren't couples supposed to be taking this thing on Valentine's Day?" Arabelle clung onto her friend's arm with a huff. One hand let go to tug idly at the collar of her favorite lime green-colored turtleneck shirt as she stood on her tiptoes, attempting to count the number of pairs ahead of them. The quest didn't need any enhancements of the sort, it was more of something that was added for players to have a good time and get some nice rewards in the process like most event quests were designed, so she had chosen to forgo her light armor for a set of warm casual clothes and a pair of white sneakers.

She thought she counted more than ten. This was going to take forever.

"There were less people in here last year." She shifted on her feet impatiently and glanced at the newest addition to the fair: a photo booth that printed the pictures out into what looked like Polaroid strips. Arabelle could still vaguely remember going to one of those places with her friends. It wasn't her fondest memory, but - she found her gaze subconsciously being drawn to the girl standing at the corner of her vision. "Ever gone to a photo booth before? No, wait, don't answer that, Miss Perfect Student." She turned her head and a teasing smile played on her lips. "Want to try it now?"

February 12, 2026

"--but, Shiro-chan, you don't understand!" A certain purple-haired girl gripped her best friend's shoulders and shook her back and forth as if to emphasize a point. Her ashen eyes filled with fake tears and she buried her head against the girl's rather ample chest. It didn't have the same effect as she would have liked, as her forehead banged against the cold, hard armor her best friend wore underneath her casual clothes. She straightened, bounced back on the soft bed, and cried: "A Valentine's-limited quest that can only be taken once! Literally only happens once a year! And he goes off and takes it with her! That goddamn, snooty guild leader of his! He didn't even bother consulting me first!"

"Aaghhh!!" The small girl let out a wordless sound of frustration and fell back against the bed, curling up against the panda plush toy that her best friend always slept with. She rolled onto her back, still holding the plushy - more like almost raking the cottony material apart with her hands - and fuming. "And guess what excuse he came up with?! 'Both of us really needed the stats and the EXP, and she didn't have anyone else to take it with. Also, I figured you would normally complain about the date being "too cheesy for you," so I didn't ask.'" She sat up and hugged the plushy close to her chest. "Do I even have to tell you what's wrong with that?!" 

The silence held for a few moments. Arabelle let herself fall back against the bed again. She closed her eyes, hugging Mishiro's plushy tight.

"Stupid scout..."

[ooc: plot and "plot." tag @Mishiro]

She only watched with a knowing smile as a flustered Huginn went on... and on... and on. He vehemently denied ever liking someone, paused, seeming to debate something within himself that she was one-hundred-percent sure was related to the topic at hand, and then turned to her, repeating what he previously said with a smile. It sounded like he was trying to convince himself, more than anything. "Hmm, I see!" Arabelle nodded, though the slight hint of amusement that slipped into her tone implied that she didn't believe him. At all. 

"Girls are gross? You're talking to one now. Dummy," she huffed and crossed her arms with a small pout. "And I never mentioned a specific gender when I asked earlier, which means you added that part yourself. Haha! Don't look at me like that. I was juuust putting that fact out there!"

The small, purple-haired girl looked around and found no materials within the vicinity. "No luck here. Wanna move deeper in?" She was already up and taking the first few steps without waiting for his response. Arabelle paused and looked over her shoulder. "The best, you say? Yes, the violin and piano are both instruments, but they're still two different things. So you don't have to consider my skill level or anything. Come on. This isn't really the best place to play, so how about doing a trade thingy once we're done with the quest? I play the piano and you play the violin?"

@Huginn

When he talked about music, the boy spoke in his calm, monotonous tone but it seemed to carry a little bit of life behind it. Something that was certainly much better than how he had been doing before. He pulled out a violin and a bow from his inventory and she raised a brow. Was he going to play a tune for her? Arabelle refrained from making her usual side comments. Music was a way to express things one can't normally say in words, and a person's preferences often told her much about their disposition. Moreso with this quiet guy. 

Then... his expression changed and he put the violin away. Playing on his own? The smile on her face twitched, slightly. Somehow, this guy always seemed to find a way to make something depressing! "Eh, everyone makes mistakes. I played a piano for a boy once." She hid her hands behind her back and didn't meet his eyes as she related the rest of the story. "It was for the Performer profession quest. He barely knew me but still came along after I asked for help. So when I was doing the first craft, I decided to pay him back and asked him to sit in. The first song was Beethoven's Fur Elise. Heard it yet? You're missing half your life as a musician if you haven't yet." She casually searched her surroundings and idly nudged a pebble away with her boot. Blank. "He asked for an encore, so I gave it to him. I played another song: Debussy's Clair de Lune. I recommend giving it a listen if you haven't yet. It's one of my favorites, for its soothing tune and some other reasons. Anyways! The first half went fine. Played it according to the song sheet. Second half, turns out the song got me a bit emotional." Behind her back, her gloved hands clenched into fists as she swung around and looked down at the severely unconfident boy with a guilty smile. "I got a bit swept up and couldn't finish the performance. What's even more embarrassing is that I barely knew the guy. He just, kinda, stood there and didn't know what to do. I think he forgot about it eventually, though~!"

"Point is, even the best people mess up sometimes. Not everyone has complete mastery of their craft as soon as they start it. I, as someone who's won a few awards from my school, am the source on this!" she declared proudly. "Music's made to be heard. Most things are made to be shared with other people, I think. So if you keep that thing to yourself all the time, you're kind of not living up to its purpose. Say, how about taking a class?" Arabelle paused and pressed a finger to her lips as she thought. "Everyone messes up in a class. If there aren't any here, you can do it after we clear the game or something."

Then she stopped. Huginn was still looking up at her, probably had his attention the whole time she talked. What was she - "Ah... I did it again." The small-purple-haired girl buried her red face in her hands. Why did she have that terrible habit of lecturing people she may or may not dislike?! "I - I totally... It's just my opinion on the matter, that's all! It's not like I'm always like this or anything!"

"Okay, wait. Ignore that. Ahem." She took a moment to compose herself and looked down at the boy. What was that thing he said about relationships? Did she get the wrong dude after all? No, wait. There was only one guy who won the Christmas familiar. The chances of another guy walking around with a similar appearance and a similar-looking familiar was smaller than the chances of Mishiro moving on from that guy. "Huh. Are you really sure~? Maybe someone you like, then? You can tell me. I may talk a lot, but I know how to keep a secret!"

@Huginn

Their lame tank's cry (no, not you guys. the Other one) echoed from the farther side of the battle. The sharp end of Arabelle's scythe hooked the <<Stunned>> dragon's jaw and mustering all her strength, she pushed against her weapon and forcefully brought the dragon's head down against the hard ground. 1 DMG. Damnnn. Turns out she was just as lame, too. The small purple-haired girl pulled her scythe free and moved to a safer distance as the mob's status effect wore off.

 The dragon's HP hadn't gone down any significant amount since Dustin's attack from the last round. And even then, his damage output hadn't been as high as his first attack. The other team was definitely having problems. She tuned out the sounds of banging metal and quickly searched through the battlefield. Though she hated to admit it, they were the key to getting out of this quest alive, so -

The Other Girl would feel a sharp tap on her shoulder.

"I can't deal any more than one damage," Arabelle admitted with a displeased frown. The Other Girl was starting to seem overwhelmed, moreso with Dustin having to take one of the hits for her, and she could tell that it was damaging their DPS's morale. "But Mace and I can still stun it so it hits Gryas less. So it's up to you guys. Stop overreacting and pay attention to your stats. I can't see it, but I can estimate that your HP values haven't even passed 80 yet."  - Basing it off from her guildmates' stats from the gathering trip the other day, with the assumption that they shot up at least three levels, and her estimate on the dragon's DMG stat. It can't be any higher than what they faced on Floor 22. - "That thing can't possibly kill either of you if you tried. That's all. Go and do your thing."

When facing a problem, always go straight for its roots! 

She totally didn't do it because she was worried or anything! Baka!

[ooc: jinx forgot the 1 dmg arabelle dealt (and also the 2 hate) last round. gryas mistakenly subtracted 3 hp instead of 1. mob and player stats changed to reflect correct values.]

The small purple-haired girl didn't respond to his first comment and continued looking for materials. A nondescript bush, no fruits hanging from trees (that she could reach, anyway), and Huginn was already picking flowers from the plant she spotted... "I can do things alone!" Arabelle huffed, crossing her arms rather cutely. "It's just a bit lonely. Sure, you can get lots of stuff done sometimes, but you don't get to share the experience with someone. That's what I think, anyway."

She spun around to look for more materials when he asked her a question: what do you like to do for fun? Overused conversation starter (that her best friend also liked using. coincidence? think not!), but it might possibly be the most positive thing he's brought up so far! Arabelle internally squeed. Progress! "I spend time with my friends, but I guess that one's obvious by now," she responded with a small smile he wouldn't see, as she was still turned away from him. "I play the piano, too. Most of the time, for shop requests - " Which she wasn't getting much of recently. But she honestly didn't mind. More time to slack off and it just so happened that the person she regularly mooched off of in the past was hanging around her little virtual home again. Man, this was the life! " - and for friends, and sometimes by myself, just to make some noise and practice." The small purple-haired girl spun around and struck a dramatic pose. "You're looking at someone who's won a few international music competitions back in the day! Surprised, weren't you? Yes, marvel in--"

She saw him curled up tightly against the tree with his familiar dancing comfortingly around him.

NANI?! Did she do something wrong?

"Hey, hey. Earth to Huginn. It's okay to not be okay, but we were talking about fun things, yeah? So you should try to be a bit more--" Arabelle inched closer and gave the top of his head (hood?) a soft pat. "--happy, I guess. Otherwise, I would be the only person having fun." She stepped back as quickly as she came and hid her hands behind her back. The next thing she said completely killed whatever he thought of her uncharacteristically caring gesture from a moment ago: "Did you have relationship problems, after all?"

@Huginn

"Long time no see, Little Mac!" Arabelle greeted with a bright smile. She quickly procured a filled-out order form from her inventory and strode to the counter, handing it over to the blacksmith. Then the small purple-haired girl stepped back, cast a glance at the inside of the shop. Not much had changed since her first visit, and she found herself drawn to the master blacksmith's collection of huge battle axes. Part of her was tempted to ask him if she could take one out for a swing, but she figured those would be too unwieldy for someone her size anyway. It's totally different when it comes to cool-looking scythes, though! "It's not that the previous one wasn't good. I kind of just thought of a build more suited to a beginner DPS like me, that's all~! So, six materials when you're done crafting? Got an estimate on when it'll be done?"

@Macradon

"Pretty place you have here," she commented in a rather friendly manner to the artisan who runs the shop. But she wasn't here to sightsee. There was a trinket - a very vital part of her DPS build - that she needed made, and the other artisan shop she'd ordered from hadn't reached out to her in months. Whoever was running that place probably died, otherwise, they would've faced a mob of angry players with unfinished orders by now, and she would have heard of it. So now it was time to try her luck with this pretty lady - "I have an order. Here's the form. I'll pay in Col after you finish it. Got an estimate on how long it'll take?"

"Thank you! Thank you so much!" the NPC cried, holding her hand up with both of theirs, and looked at her like she was a grace sent from Heaven. Or whatever gods the dwellers of this artificial world worshipped. Political correctness was a big deal this day and age, you know? "We're glad there are still people like you in this world. But please excuse our rudeness! We need to treat the sick first!"

People like her in this world? That was a funny thing to say. She only did it for the rewards. Arabelle pulled her hand from the NPC. It gave her a deep bow, thanked her once again in its pre-set dialogue, and scurried off to a nearby house. She stayed for a moment, clicking the heel of her boot against the ground impatiently, then followed the quest NPC into the building. 

Beside a sick man's bed, a woman brought her hands together and prayed. The quest NPC assured her. The local alchemist finished mixing a potion. Underneath a doorway leading to an inner room, a small child stood and watched curiously, holding the family dog back by its leash. The two beside the bed rose and moved away as the town's alchemist administered the medicine. 

What a laughable act.

"Here's your payment. Miss, if you want to, you could--"

She gave a smile that seemed a little bit strained.

"No, thank you."

~~~

Thread Summary

Arabelle
- 3 SP [1 page + 2 quest reward]
- 400 Col

@Spangie
- 3 SP [1 page + 2 quest reward]