Mishiro

Snooty old relatives. Typical of her small purple-haired friend to think that way. Mishiro had an amused smile as she continued, "It's not just consisted of adults. I had cousins who were close to my age too, and I spent most of my time playing house with them." Then Arabelle asked if she was... Spanish? From her expression, Jinx seemed to believe the same, too. That was a reasonable assumption to make. 'Noche Buena' was a Spanish word that meant 'the good night' and if she could recall correctly, the tradition 'Noche Buena' was also practiced in other countries with slight variations according to the country's culture. "No, I'm not from Spain. I was born in the Philippines and lived there until I turned 10. Quick history lesson. The Philippines was once colonized by Spain. The country eventually gained its freedom after three hundred years or so, but because of how long they stayed, the Spanish culture became a major influence on the Philippines. Some words in the main dialect and if I recall correctly, most Filipino surnames have Spanish origins. It's the same with Noche Buena, though it's changed over the years to gain its own identity."

It was Arabelle's turn to tell a story. She spoke of an annual snowball fight, and of course, the small girl loved it for its chaos. "So even before SAO, you were already like that," Mishiro commented with a small laugh. She turned to Jinx, ready to ask the timid girl to tell her own story. Then it came back to her. "I was a burden to my family... I jinxed my family, which is why I called myself 'Jinx'..." Oh. She decided not to ask. Jinx seemed to have fun listening to their stories, so if she decided to volunteer her own, then that would be fine. Mishiro still wasn't aware of the girl's family situation, so it was best to be careful and avoid bringing any bad memories up.

Movement to the side caught her attention. Arabelle stood with her gaze directed at Stryder's group and Mishiro followed, dreading what was about to happen but at the same time too morbidly curious to stop. The girl took aim and hurled a snowball at the back of Roman's head. "Arabelle!" Whatever she had to say next was drowned out by the girl yelling an obviously made-up excuse and her laughter. The scout's green gaze met hers for a brief moment - his expression couldn't have said anything but 'betrayal of the highest degree!!' - and the corners of her lips quirked up into a small, amused smile. Honestly, right when she thought they were going to have a normal conversation for once... Arabelle turned back to them excitedly and Mishiro's grey gaze flicked over once again to a red-faced Roman, reaching down to make a snowball. "Yes, I saw it," she went along, carefully keeping her expression neutral. She tucked her hands into her coat pockets and feigned innocence. "He won't be buying you that Christmas cake later."

From where the small girl threw a snowball, two came flying back at her. If she didn't believe in the concept of karma before... Now it was Mishiro's turn to laugh as the girl fell forward and had to be caught by Jinx. "You turned your back on him, it was almost like you were asking for it," she teased. She looked up as someone else approached, someone... familiar. Oh, the groom from that wedding. From his expression, it was easy to peg him as the suspect for the second snowball. Roman was too nice to throw two. "It's fine. It was a... welcome interruption," she responded with a knowing smile. "Merry Christmas. How have you been?"

[ooc: @Arabelle @Jinx @Hazado]

Her friends. Arabelle had a lot of friends apart from her and Roman, though Mishiro never learned who they were until now. She glanced at the little group they'd left behind. The people her friend fought alongside: Stryder, the little kid who spoke in third-person, and Jinx. They were a guild, so there had to be more. But one thing was for certain: Mishiro was not part of that circle. She turned back and gave a slight frown. Was Arabelle offended or was she just teasing? She was smiling, but then again, she always did even when she was mad. "No, I can answer that," she disagreed. The girl's teasing, her tone, it all seemed a little... off. Perhaps it was best to give an honest response. With her worldview, there was only one answer. "Both. I'm not leaving him for you, and I'm not leaving you for him." But if she had no other choice but to choose only one...

She shook her head. A heavy, unexplainable feeling rested in her chest upon hearing Arabelle's accusation of favoritism. Of course she would have her own biases. She could only see the world and other people through her own eyes. She knew that, and she knew her friend wasn't being serious. But, this was... this felt different. Suddenly, the girl's playful smile didn't seem so friendly anymore. Mishiro calmed herself and responded, "I didn't say anything because I believed it was part of your usual banter." Honestly. Mean nicknames and insults were often a part of her two friends' interactions. But as far as Mishiro knew, it had always been completely harmless-- "Are you even thinking about what you're saying? 'It would have clearly affected him in some way.' Don't deny it, that's what you said, word for word. He never PMed you back, you weren't there to see his reaction, and neither of us told you about it. You knew he was going to take it negatively beforehand, so why did you even call him that in the first place? Different example, same argument. Honestly. I'm not impressed."

Now they were just starting to argue. It was time to stop. She didn't want to break another friendship. Not in the middle of a Christmas-themed event. They were supposed to be celebrating. "Let's drop that topic for now. I'm not mad, so can you tell me what happened earlier?" Mishiro offered her best friend an uneasy smile. It was Arabelle. They'd known each other since the first day. She took a step back, as if doing so physically would help her distance herself from her raging emotions mentally, and quietly counted to ten. And she listened, with a growing feeling of anxiety that only seemed to worsen as the small girl continued along her story. "The Laughing Coffin. Your accusations aren't baseless. Well, I haven't told you anything from that day yet neither am I planning to, so I understand why you don't trust him."

Still, she wanted to--

The silver-haired girl walked up to them and reached down to make a snowball. Oh. Jinx. The shielder had encountered the Laughing Coffin, too. It was how Mishiro had met her in the first place. How much did she hear? She heard the girl's question about sharing stories, and her grey gaze moved over to Arabelle, passing on a silent message to her with a nod. Jinx followed them here out of curiosity, and maybe even to have some fun. She would be uncomfortable if they carried on with their serious conversation. "Stories, huh? Arabelle, do you have any? Let's make it Christmas-themed. Family traditions, favorite gifts, things like that..." Mishiro prompted with an amused smile. As the purple-haired girl though, she decided to start. She crouched down and reached for a clump of snow. "I'll start. In my home country, we had something called 'Noche Buena.' It's a large feast that takes place on Christmas Eve, and you celebrate it with your family." She made circular motions with her hands, and the snowball slowly started to take form. "And it's not just immediate family. My parents would go all-out and invite relatives up to the third degree, so it kind of turns into a family reunion of sorts. As for what we do... I forgot the specifics, but I think it was basically just a Christmas party. Everyone brings food, there are gift exchanges, and you get to talk to relatives you haven't seen in a while. It's been a long time since then, but it was... fun. Even if it took place at night, it was still lively and I remember I didn't want to sleep because I didn't want to miss any of it."

[ooc: tag @Arabelle @Jinx]

Saying that he didn't find that red-haired girl cute right after that reaction. Mishiro sipped from her black coffee, and it was obvious from her amused smirk that she didn't believe what he said. Not. One. Bit. One point for Mishiro! She was honest with her answer, and she didn't get as embarrassed as he did. She was considering whether she should tease him more when he suddenly changed the subject. To her drawings. Lucky for him, she liked talking about her hobbies. "Yes. But I don't really stick to one thing in particular. Apart from commissions, I mostly just draw things I like seeing. Like, the view from the window in my room and I believe I also have a drawing of that panda familiar." She pointed, with a finger, at the panda waiting by the door for customers to arrive. "I don't know its name, so I just call it Pochi. Generic, but cute."

Then he said it. That madman. "--explicitly pornographic sketches of you and this pink-haired dude playing out your sweetest fantasies?"

Mishiro f*cking choked. P-porno... that word hadn't even been present in her thoughts up to now! And much less associated with him! She slammed her coffee mug down on the table, let out a strangled, embarrassed sound, and her hands went up to unsuccessfully cover her red face. If she thought she had control a moment ago, she definitely did not now! "No! No, no, no, no. I don't, I-I totally don't! I can't even draw the positions very well--" Then she vaguely recalled that she did learn how to draw a... body in that situation, but that was mostly a dare from her friends, and she'd vowed to herself to never think of that again. And... and... Roman and - [censored] [censored] [censored]. She buried her bright red face in her hands. "Eeeeeee."

"Okay, okay! I promise I only have one sketchbook, so I'll show you!" the clearly-embarrassed girl suddenly exclaimed without being prompted to. She brought up her shared inventory and scrolled through Roman's entire scented candle collection - why had he dumped it there again? - and finally, she came across the right item and her sketchbook materialized in her hands. Mishiro handed it to him, no more like shoved it towards his face, and sat back with her face still red. "See? I don't even--"

Famous. Last. Words.

Her sketchbook had many drawings contained within it. They were fairly normal things you would find in an artist's sketchpad: pictures of sceneries, portraits of people, and practice pages. But the first four pages were exclusively occupied by her drawings of him. Two portraits, one with his hair in his usual ponytail and the other with his hair loose. One drawing she had snuck in when he fell asleep at her desk. And a full-color drawing of her and Roman sitting together with caramel apples in their hands, their backs to the sunset. 

"I bet your cowboy fantasies are much worse," Mishiro mumbled half-heartedly. She rested her arms on the table and put her head down, too embarrassed to see his face.

Mishiro was well aware of the meaning of the word 'jinx,' but she didn't find the girl's player name questionable because she'd simply assumed Jinx gave herself that name for a lighter reason. Before the servers locked them in, SAO was nothing but a game people came to have a good time in. So... she didn't know what to say. She couldn't simply say Jinx wasn't a burden... she didn't know the girl's family situation before she came here. Or much of anything else for the matter. If she spoke words of comfort, they would be empty and meaningless - words she had spoken just because that was what she thought the girl wanted to hear, but at the same time devoid of understanding - and the timid shielder would know that too. 

"I see..." she stalled, letting her grey gaze sweep through the clearing for any signs of Roman. None. He must really be making sure. "Well. Perhaps you could... try fixing that here. It's easier to be a strong person in this game than in real life. That is, if you work hard enough. Well, it's easy to tell the origin of my name. Mishiro, written in the Japanese kanji for 'depth' and 'white.' I don't really have any reason other than that I liked the way it was written." 

So Arabelle got along well with her guildmates. That was nice to hear. Mishiro smiled softly as the shielder continued talking, with obvious admiration for her purple-haired friend in her eyes. Well, if Arabelle didn't somehow influence that timid, innocent girl to start acting that way, it was all well and good. "Well... keep getting along with her. Don't ask for love advice, though. She'll tease you to no end." She only did that once, during a moment of weakness on a Valentine's Day.

Then... her friend must have done something. Stryder had turned a bright red and was speaking very defensively. Arabelle was in front of him. She looked mad, did it have something to do with the inappropriate comments earlier? Oh, she was probably getting mad on her guildmates' behalf. One would be concerned if they were given enough evidence of an alleged cheating case. Even more so, with Arabelle and her odd obsession with love and relationships. The reason behind that... still remains a mystery to Mishiro. Then Roman interfered - much to Stryder's relief - and the girl seemed to calm down. By just a bit. Arabelle turned away and marched forward, grabbing Mishiro's hand. "Ah, Arabelle..." She wasn't sure what to feel about being used as an excuse to walk out of a situation the little, purple-haired girl had obviously caused. If there were misunderstandings, it was best to--

"Let's go. You want to talk, right?"

Mishiro let herself be pulled along. The girl took them to the secluded area she'd pointed out earlier and let go of her hand. She unconsciously rubbed her hand against her wrist and watched Arabelle carefully. "He was a part of your guild. He told me that himself. That much I can say about our meeting from before." Mishiro paused and glanced back at the group of people they'd left earlier. Roman, talking to Stryder. That was a nice sight to see. She figured those two would get along over their mutual struggles with Arabelle's antics. Yet another way her small friend brought people together. At this point, Mishiro almost suspected she was doing it intentionally. "I saw the PM you sent to Claude. Read it over his shoulder before he could hide it, actually. Really, Arabelle? 'Join the party?' There's a limit to how far your jokes could go, you know." She crossed her arms and shook her head with a tired sigh. Well, she understood that it was harmless, but... "I do hope you meant something else by that. So? What happened? Can you confirm that it was really him?"

--

With that little bundle of trouble gone - along with Mira, well it was only natural as that girl hated being alone and tried to avoid it at all times - it was now much, much more peaceful. Stryder, Arabelle's guild leader, now mumbled things Claude didn't understand since he wasn't paying enough attention, but given the context, the boy in the blue hood was probably complaining. "Hey, if you managed to invite someone like her into your guild, it wouldn't be that hard dealing with it. Just tell her the truth," Claude reassured with a chuckle. No, seriously. When he'd invited her, all he got was a flat "No." And she'd also called his other guildmates "grumpy, old farts" "How did you invite her?"

The timid little shielder that Mira saved the other day looked up at them. Now he could understand why she'd been so concerned. She was literally oblivious to everything that happened. And-- Roman?! How did she learn his real name? The scout stared, dumbfounded, as the girl innocently pattered along the streets, going the same way the two close friends had gone.

Claude quickly turned to Stryder and the little kid on his shoulders. "Don't call me that. The player name's Claude. I have no idea where she got that, maybe Mishiro dropped it by accident. Tell her that too, alright? I don't think she's aware that it's actually my real name."

[ooc: tag @Arabelle @Jinx @Stryder]

Somehow, when her friend Arabelle was around... everything always seemed to devolve into chaos. The little purple-haired girl and her guild leader were now yelling at each other - though she could understand that it was mostly a joke - and then she turned and was now yelling at a red-faced Roman for not contacting her earlier... and then there were those very inappropriate remarks from Jinx and the young girl perched at Stryder's shoulders whom she could only assumed was called Fae and... Mishiro pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. This guild, if you could call it one, didn't seem like much of a guild. A "close" group of friends, perhaps. They weren't as formal as Roman's, and the members obviously did not see their guild leaders as superiors. It had its own advantages and disadvantages, but she could easily tell that this was the type of guild Arabelle would prefer. Her small friend did not like acting formal, nor following orders.

Once the conversation lulled, Mishiro would approach Stryder with her hand held out formally. Stryder, Stryder... Pinball had mentioned him. Which meant that this was his old guild, the one he'd distanced himself from. But Arabelle never mentioned being guildmates with him... "Stryder. Nice to meet you. I am sorry for my friend and any trouble she might have caused," she said with an amused smile. Arabelle was... difficult to cooperate with, in that she followed her whims at almost all times, so how Stryder had managed to invite her to a guild and make her follow orders was a mystery to Mishiro. Arabelle refused Roman's guild invite... so why this group in particular? When offered to her, she grasped his hand and shook it firmly. "And please, don't worry about it. Her remark from earlier wouldn't change my first impression of you in any way." 

And her first impression... Mishiro's first impression of him was from that day. Hestia with her 'Wanted' posters and her recruitment, and the boy in the blue hood with his bitter words. When he was his guildmates, he seemed... different. Happier. She wasn't going to bring that up, obviously. Everyone had smiles on their faces. Now was not the time to ruin the mood. Perhaps... she should, too. 

She remembered that PM and the crowd that had dispersed earlier.

No, doing it completely was impossible. Mishiro's gaze met Arabelle's, and she subtly gestured to a secluded area between two event stalls that were not receiving as many customers as they had hoped. She still needed to learn what happened earlier, but while the other girl was busy... "Jinx, I had no idea you and Arabelle were guildmates," Mishiro spoke to the timid shielder at Stryder's side. For now, she was going to disregard those inappropriate comments from all three with their guild leader and his... bed. She could only hope it was all an inside joke. "It certainly is a small world. She's unpredictable, but I believe you can trust her. Are the both of you getting along well?"

Lastly, she turned to Roman, who had been sending her questioning glances ever since Arabelle's introduction of her. She already likes someone, so she's off-limits! Honestly. Any other day and her friend would throw her under the bus just for laughs. "I don't have anyone I like that way, so rest assured, Aniki. You don't have to beat anyone up. I mean, isn't that the common trope for 'big brother' figures in literature...?"

"Don't make fun of me, Shiro," Roman's hand went to the back of his head - a nervous habit - and he laughed uneasily. "Seriously."

Mishiro froze. Because it was a regular topic between the two of them, Arabelle teased her about that a lot but--

"I'm not that protective. What do you take me as?!"

She gave another small, amused smile.

[ooc: tag @Stryder @Arabelle @Jinx]

...
...
...

"Your order has been taken. Please wait a few minutes!" chimed a generic but pleasant-sounding voice. On top of their table, data shards shimmered into existence and joined together to form a stand with the boy's order number. His Col value subsequently decreased.

"Even from this far...? And no complaints about shouting? I rate this cafe's customer service an eleven out of ten. Restaurants in the real world should follow their example." And in front of him, Mishiro could hardly keep a straight face at the boy's embarrassment. She hadn't expected that reaction, had only spoken that way because she didn't know anything else she could tease him about, but somehow she'd hit right at his weak spot. Holding her large mug of coffee with both hands, her small smile seemed almost smug as she continued. "So, after all that talk, you're the one leaving me for her. You didn't answer my question, mister. Is she a - " she began, tilting her head to the side innocently. Mishiro was rephrasing the question, but that didn't matter. With his weakness discovered, the power dynamic was obvious now! "Is she a - cute friend of yours?"

For the best...? That was... That wasn't something one should say. Or even think. It was obviously a warning sign. To what, he probably already knew. Just how much has the disappearance of his sister affected him? No, perhaps it wasn't just that. She didn't know what he did on a daily basis. Or what had happened to him recently. Mishiro gave him a quick once-over and noticed the absence of the little bird necklace that hung from his neck the day she met him. "It wouldn't be the best for your sister," she pointed out. First, the logical approach. "If she cares about you as much as you do, then she'd be sad if you disappeared."

Mishiro made no further remark. He wouldn't take it nicely if she were to give him a full-fledged lecture on why he shouldn't be needlessly putting himself in danger right now. She stuck her hands into her coat pockets and waited patiently as he made his order. "Caramel frappucino." Then she looked over at @Huginn, and decided to offer him a little tidbit about herself. It would make him feel more comfortable if he knew something about her. "It's his favorite drink. The person I'm close to, I mean. So it ended up being one of my favorites, too. Let's get a table."

Once they were seated, Mishiro idly played with the cuffs of the brown coat's large sleeves. "Let's see. Well, what's your sister like?"

Reaver, Spect, and Mano. The three Laughing Coffin recruits whom they'd first encountered. Jinx told her earlier that she didn't know any of them, but Mishiro supposed it was a mistake made purely out of the shock from the situation. She had just woken up and learned that there were players who wanted to kill her, after all. She would carefully file away those three names in her mind for later. Perhaps Roman or Arabelle would know something about the three of them. Or the nature of the Laughing Coffin guild, and their brutal recruitment process. Why they would want to kill Jinx, whether they were being sincere with her the first time Jinx met them or already possessed ulterior motives by then, and why they wanted to join something like the Laughing Coffin in the first place was a mystery she couldn't solve with the information she had now.

Was this her problem to solve? Not really. It was Jinx's problem. But there was no denying that Mishiro was involved now. She couldn't simply ignore something like this, moreso that it had just happened right in front of her.

"No," Mishiro said softly. "I don't think it's your fault. When they chose to attack you, it was a decision they made on their own. And normally, people wouldn't try to kill someone just because they were rude to them." She briefly looked around the clearing and, seeing no signs of movement, turned back to Jinx. "We're still waiting for Claude, so let's talk about something else." And she had to wipe that pained look from that girl's face. She seemed to be blaming herself for everything and that wasn't good. As far as Mishiro knew, the shielder had no fault in this. "Jinx, right? Why did you name yourself Jinx?"

He was doing a weird gesture. Leaning back and flipping his hair to the side with a smile. She could only describe it as... flamboyant? Was that the right word? He was surely awkward at first, but now he was starting to resemble Arabelle. In that they were both unpredictable weirdoes. Then he asked her - "Is he a - cute friend of yours?" - and Mishiro almost choked on her coffee. Yes, at this point, she was 100% certain this random kid she picked up from the front door of her favorite cafe would get along with Arabelle. At this point, the purple-haired girl was scarce in both her and Roman's lives, but if she resumed her regular visits - Mishiro would definitely... not introduce the two. 

One confusing person at a time was enough!

Mishiro cleared her throat and looked at him from over the brim of her coffee mug. She carefully maintained her calm expression but even so, a slight shade of pink dusted her cheeks. "Uh," she began very eloquently. "I suppose one would normally consider him as a good-looking person. Um, he has pink hair. It's a weird color, and it's also really long. But... he pulls it off, I guess? And he's tall so, uhhh." She was rambling. This was bad. Where did her communication skills go?! Just because of one, unexpected question? "In conclusion, I think he's cute. But, um, what you're implying, I don't - see him that way. I don't really see anyone that way right now."

Gosh. That was top-level communication skills right there. She had to get back at him. Somehow. Like she would sometimes with Arabelle.

"What about you, mister?" She leaned forward, doing her best imitation of Arabelle's playful smile. After those two embarrassments, she wasn't feeling very formal now. No, more like, she'd forgotten about it. "What are your standards of cute? Hahaha. Maybe that red-haired girl from a few days ago?"

For some reason, the eyepatched girl seemed to retreat into herself as Mishiro approached. She could take a guess at the reason why. Perhaps an inclination to act more formal around her? Mishiro always was an overly-formal person, something which she realized had a tendency to unsettle the more casual people around her. As her friend so elegantly put it once: "This is a game, not a damn office!" Being calm and composed always had its benefits, but there was a time for everything. Perhaps now was a good opportunity to learn how to be more friendly and casual around people she just met. She tried her best to loosen her stiff shoulders and seem more sincere as she spoke. "Oh, that's good," she replied. Then the tank spoke of a guild leader, whilst glancing at the boy with the blue hood. Interesting. Very interesting. Could that boy be... A guild leader. That comment about his family. She showed no outward expression of her suspicion. "That's fine. Claude and I'll be here. Or, um... do you know where it is? We went to that stall earlier, so we could show you the way if you want."

Meanwhile, Roman did another scan of his surroundings. Nothing suspicious came up, but he did spot a familiar face. He momentarily let go of Mishiro's hand, leaving her with Jinx and her guild leader, and approached the swordsman dressed in a festive outfit. "Hey. I recognize you from the APD recruitment. Dustin, right? I'm Claude. Not a full-fledged member, but I'm trying to help Miss Hestia track down the Wanted players. It's nice to formally meet you. Let's take this opportunity to unwind, okay?" He extended his hand with a friendly smile. "Also, did you happen to see a girl with purple hair? She's this small--" He held his hand at chest-level, no maybe even a little lower than that. Arabelle was a smol person. "And she's loud and likes messing with people. Pretty hard to miss."

[ooc: @Jinx @Dustin]

"Weren't you crying over that internet idol once? It was maybe three days after the first Christmas we spent here and you were in your room whining about missing Magi☆Mari's Christmas special--"

"I'm over that phase, don't you dare bring it up!" A red-faced Roman looked away from the girl at his arm with a rare, mischievous smile that resembled Arabelle's maybe a bit too closely, and his bright green gaze quickly scanned his immediate surroundings. Nothing particularly out of place, though his attention did linger on a blond-haired man staring calmly up at what seemed like nothing. He slowed his pace and glanced up at the top of the roof. Rolling... rolling... fail. The unlucky scout saw nothing, and neither did Mishiro. "Ughhh. Sh*t. Now I'm starting to imagine orange cursors everywhere. Oh hey, isn't that Jinx?"

"Her outfit is a bit unusual, but it looks like her." Mishiro squinted at the silver-haired girl wearing a... cat onesie? surrounded by people she could only assume were her friends. She knew Jinx. They weren't very close but Mishiro and Roman saved her from a group of orange players once. It had been a while since that day, and she thought it would be nice to say 'hi.' ...If only she wasn't busy. She glanced at the players that consisted of the shielder's little friend group (guild?) and immediately recognized two of them. The boy in the blue hood. The brown-haired swordsman. From her first encounter with the APD. Suddenly, she was interested in meeting them. "Aniki, let's go say hi."

"Huh? But aren't we looking for..."

"Arabelle has purple hair and is the loudest person I've ever met. She stands out a lot, so most likely, they would have spotted her already. Besides, I don't think she's alone right now. With her personality, she's probably surrounded by a bunch of friends." Mishiro moved forward, tugging on Roman's hand. "I want to see how Jinx is doing. If you want, you can look for Arabelle yourself. It's fine with me."

"No, I'll stay. I want to check on her, too." He was walking behind her. She didn't see his fond smile as he let himself be pulled along. Eventually, as they approached the guild, he sped up his pace so he was walking alongside her. 

"Jinx," Mishiro called out simply. She stopped in front of the girl and her stoic expression softened into a small smile. "An advanced Merry Christmas to you. How are you doing?"

[ooc: tag @Jinx @Stryder @Dustin ... and everyone else in that group. also, there's no direct interaction, but also tagging @Pinball]

"...go and search, Bandit." Roman set his ferret down on the snowy ground and handed it a small treat. Mishiro watched, leaning against a nearby stall with a mug of steaming hot chocolate in her hands. Well, no wonder he agreed to come to the event so easily. The prospect of limited items and a raffle with no registration fee would easily draw in players. Among those could be... that person he was assigned to track down. Are you here, too? She sipped from the mug in her hands, and quietly watched as the little brown ferret chittered an affirmative and disappeared into the crowd. "Done signing the both of us up? I'll be counting on your luck, Shiro!"

"You have as much of a chance as I do." She handed him the raffle tickets and her gaze drifted to where Bandit the ferret had disappeared to. "Do you really think that person'll be here? I mean, wouldn't he consider the risk first?"

"It's not a large possibility, by all means. But it's better than blindly searching through all twenty floors. I hate to admit this, but I've run out of leads since that info broker confirmed he wasn't on those set of floors." Pat. Pat. She looked up to see his hand on her head. "Well, don't worry yourself about it. It's my job. Let's go find Arabelle and have some fun, shall we?" 

[ooc: putting this here as a reminder. Mishiro's joined the raffle.]

December 19, 2025

Mishiro placed the sketchpad down and replaced the cap on her ink pen. She picked up her coffee mug. With her free hand, brought the menu up and opened a PM from Arabelle. A Christmas-themed event. This would make the third Christmas she'd celebrated in Aincrad. It was almost unnerving how much time had passed. And how much time, she estimated, the game would take to clear at this slow pace. Finishing the last of her coffee, she set the mug down on the table beside the open sketchpad. It was open to the page containing her latest draft. A sketch of a player with a hood covering most of her facial features, aside from her narrow jawline and thin cheeks. Mishiro flipped her sketchpad shut and returned it to her inventory. It wasn't Christmas yet. But it was a good opportunity for Roman to unwind.

Cafe Myosotis's glass door swung open, bringing a fresh wave of snow into the shop. She rose to her feet ready to greet a customer, only to find that it was Roman, dressed in his casual winter attire. He quickly shut the door behind him and gave her a small wave of greeting. "Hey, Shiro. Did you receive Arabelle's PM? She said there's a Christmas-themed event going on in Floor 4." He approached the table she had been sitting at and smiled down at her warmly. "As expected of that little gossip. She always seems to be the first one to find out about everything. Well, regardless, I think it's a good idea for you to go. Take a break for once. You've been staring at those sketches for the past week, I'm surprised you haven't gone mad already."

Mishiro returned his smile. There was no need to convince him, after all.

It didn't take long to reach the venue. Arabelle wasn't very specific in her PM, so they both figured it was in Snowfrost's teleport plaza and not in some building within the main settlement. Dressed in her usual schoolgirl-esque attire with an oversized duffle coat and a pair of mittens, she held onto Roman's hand as they strolled past the different stalls and festivities the fair had to offer. There were cookies cut in the shape of Christmas trees, hot chocolate, and... a stall selling limited items? A quick glance at their prizes proved to Mishiro that they really were limited. Normal items wouldn't sell if they were that expensive. 

"Do you still remember the first Christmas we spent here?"

That prompted her to look up. "Of course I do. We even built a snowman at the end, didn't we?"

"Tried to build," Roman corrected with a chuckle. "You tripped and messed it up right when we were adding the final touches. How about we try again this year? I think this much snow would be enough."

"Mm. Maybe. Oh, look." They came to a stop in front of a large shop in the central area of the fair. It sold limited items, and most importantly... Mishiro approached the large, burly merchant, gently pulling Roman along with her. "Hello, mister. I'd like to join in the raffle."

[ooc: tag @Benny]

Mishiro accepted the hand that was offered to her and shook it firmly. Alright. Now she was at least acquainted with the groom. Then he stepped closer and in a voice low enough that only she could hear, he asked the usual question. She had to hold back a laugh. "If she talks to you and teases you in that same manner every day, you sort of develop an immunity to it," she responded, speaking softly so her purple-haired friend wouldn't hear. Then she took a step back and gave a more serious response. This one was loud enough to be heard by Arabelle, and vague enough for the small girl to start overthinking things. "And it has a certain charm to it, I guess. Makes you smile sometimes, doesn't it?"

She stepped back and watched Hazado and Arabelle's proceeding interactions with a small smile. Her friend mentioned earlier that they hadn't seen each other in a while, but they still seemed quite close. Like a big brother and a mischievous little sister. 

Her attention drifted to the other guests. Most having conversations with their friends, and a few simply sitting to the side and waiting for the ceremony to start. She didn't know any of them. They were all unfamiliar, people she had never once encountered in her--wait. Hestia the police chief, conversing with a blonde woman in a black dress. Mishiro considered approaching her, just to say hi and give an update, but then decided to reserve it for later. She seemed busy. 

Mishiro tapped Arabelle on the shoulder and gestured to the seats on the second-to-the-last row. "I'll be there."