Mishiro

//fishing.

//fishing.

An’s fingers curled into her palm.

And she twisted her hand back from the water, sending droplets and the occasional [Gold Star] flying into the air in a wide arc. A large portion ended up running in rivulets down one side of Mishiro’s hair.

Bewilderment took precedence over the tugging at the end of her line. 

What just happened?

“Aah! I’m so sorry!” An shrunk back in guilt as soon as their eyes met. She clapped both hands together. If sending a couple of them flying wasn’t already enough, the remaining stars fell out of her grasp and onto the floor – scattering, like the frantic words that spilled from the girl’s mouth. “Sorry, sorry, I’m… I felt a fish pass under my hand and ah, I thought if I caught it by the tail we could add another material to our count. Geez, I… I guess I shouldn’t’ve been so confident, ahahaha…”

She considered it for a moment. Then An and her tight sheepish smile vanished into the far corner of her eye as she turned and began to wind back the reel.

“It’s alright,” Mishiro said quietly. “I think, after a couple more materials, we can head back to the shore.”

"Like!" An straightened. The sailboat bobbed with her sudden movement. In the waters, the stars were alight with a faint glow. She pumped her fists for no apparent reason. Motivation, perhaps? "That's maybe--"

Mishiro didn't break her contemplative silence.

"--A thousand col and a walk to the shore, all for..." Her voice wavered, "Um, the entire thing to just..."

 She made a vague gesture just out of the corner of Mishiro's eye.

And she gave up -- for no apparent reason.

This new silence was unwelcome. It began mid-sentence; and if Mishiro turned her head slightly in the other's direction, she could just barely catch An startle and immediately twist around to face the lake side. She shouldn't have stopped talking when she did, and Mishiro did not have the discernment crack the code the other had thrown up all around herself. Subtleties would get nowhere with her.

She took a moment to free her hook of its catch and toss it back into the water again.

"I've just been thinking," Mishiro said. "That 'lanterns disappearing when two of them touch' being all there is to it was a bit of a hasty assumption. Don't you think so, too?"

"Ah! Um..." 

Finally, An snapped to attention. "They disappear!" The boat pitched a little to the side at the girl's sudden movement, but unlike prior instances, she didn't appear to notice it. "The lanterns— when two lanterns touch, I mean. They turn to dust. Like poof."

She lightly clapped her hands together in demonstration.

"And I think that's disappointing! What if you were standing by the shore with— with—" and the rhythm she'd regained was interrupted: a faint hue of pink rose to the girl's cheeks and her crimson eyes quickly darted to the side "—a friend or something and you wanted to watch your lanterns sail down the middle? Side-by-side, even the smallest ripple could send them bumping into each other, you know?"

"I'd think..." Another toss. Mishiro's lure was now somewhere deep in the calming waters. "That as long as they know what they're in for, the sentiment should still be there."

She waited.

She turned her head to find the merchant staring at her strangely, surprise palpable in her features for a reason she didn't understand.

"What if they don't."

"I said, assume they do."

"'Oh'?" Mishiro echoed curiously.

And for a while, nothing followed. There was a small splash! as An dipped her hand beneath the water and drew it back to reveal a fistful of [Gold Stars], and the ripples from the disturbance awakened a faint glow from the crystals nearby. Her escort chewed on her lip, counting the stars she'd gathered. "Pretty..." she finally mumbled in a small voice. Then An glanced up, furtively -- as if she just wanted to take a slight peek -- and immediately ducked her head down when their gazes met.

Mishiro withheld comment. Instead, she set down her fishing rod and swung her leg over the seat, bringing her face-to-face with An as she bent down to retrieve her oars. Around their vessel, the waters had begun to calm and the light from the mysterious fragments waned. She dipped one oar into the water, reigniting a cluster of tiny fallen stars, and the other followed shortly after.

She rowed forward, and they sailed out into the liquid cosmos.

And the silence just continued.

She thought the girl at her side would have talked her ear off for as long as she could, but An's enthusiasm for horrendous food combinations appeared to have fizzled out as suddenly as it had emerged. This was fine; she treasured her own moments of quiet, especially when her primary objective required some level of focus.

Mishiro fished out another bait from her inventory.

The waters shimmered where her hook landed.

At first, she thought it was just another trick of the light: that Coral's lake just reflected the night sky so perfectly that the stars mirrored on its surface appeared so vivid — as if she could reel them in if she just tried. Then Mishiro gave her line a gentle tug and the tiny flecks of gold moved along with the ripples in the water. They were beautiful, twinkling icosahedrons trailing after the float like dust to a passing comet, and for every disturbance and every fingerbreadth it crossed as she wound back the string, countless more revealed themselves.

She pried a fish covered in [Gold Stars] from her hook moments later and put off her usual ritual of counting up her gains to admire the glimmering lake, breathless.

"No. I'm planning to exchange them for ingredients I can actually use. If not with my guild, then there are always some players looking to trade their materials in Floor 1." Her words were followed with a satisfying splash as the hook landed a little ways off from where she'd aimed. "Some things just don't go together."

"Mn, I could've sworn I once heard about someone who made ice cream out of fish though."

"You might be thinking of taiyaki. Regular ice cream in fish-shaped bread."

"I think I know my sweets well enough," huffed her companion. Then there was a pause, and the boat rocked a little as An suddenly seemed to shift about for a more comfortable way to sit without bumping her knees against Mishiro's side. Before she attended to the light tug on her line, Mishiro swung her leg over her own seat to afford An some more space and caught the flamboyant girl staring off in the distance. Pouting. "In the real world. I know I've heard it at least once." Now her voice was clearer. "Think someone's tried it in here? I don't know how crafting works for you, but I doubt you and all the other cooks are just choosing from some small set of recipes. There should be room for experimentation."

She reeled in her line and looked at her still-wriggling catch. Its mouth opened and closed in panic. And as soon as she removed it from her hook, the carp slipped out of her grasp, flailed gracelessly onto the floor of the boat, then gave a couple more wet flops before the system mercifully turned it into materials. 

"Perhaps. ...But I don't think I'm that adventurous."

Must she? As the merchant flung open the crate with gusto, Mishiro covered her nose and caught the lid — slamming it back down with her entire weight.

"Wait, wah—" Their little rowboat rocked dangerously (not really) from one side to the other. And probably against her will, An braced herself against the crate, a white-knuckled grip along its edges. "Mish!"

"We're not going to tip."

A bright red flush spread over the other girl's cheeks, and she glared. Which confounded her; Mishiro thought she'd done decently with her reassurance.

"...The water leaking from our haul might turn into a concern though."

And with that on their minds, the beginnings of an unpleasant exchange(?) dissipated. She looked expectantly at An, who chewed on her lip as she stared at the closed lid.

"U-um."

The air still carried the stench of rotten eggs. Whatever had been in there did not take to the stagnant waters very well, but wasn't so far gone that the system stopped considering it a material.

"You only need to undo the lock for the items to show up in your inventory," she supplied helpfully. "So you could just crack the next one open a little and have the same effect."

An blinked. For a moment, it looked like the other didn't believe her, but after a quick look through her interface, she was dutifully listing off their gains with a small glint in her eye. "Weapon. Fish, fish, some bolts of... cotton?" Two fingers scrolled down the window, her next words accompanied with a soft giggle. "...and a consumable. Do you think my customers can stomach something that came out of that?"

They sent the crate back into the depths, where it would hopefully never be fished up again.

[quest: Night about the Galactic Lake]

Tanabata, night two.

Mishiro wanted to go on a fishing trip.

So Mishiro went on a fishing trip.

Look, there’s literally nothing to be poetic about–

Yesterday, she’d given this year’s Tanabata its due appreciation. Today, she left her yukata back home and slunk past crowds of fancier-dressed festivalgoers, taking the sidestreets wherever the rabble grew too thick. Her shadow faithfully trailed along every step of her way – or so the more oblivious of the pair would think. Though she’d kept a considerate pace, the girl didn’t look back until she completed a transaction for a rental at the docks. 

A rowboat, large enough to comfortably fit two, and the darksteel battleaxe which she laid behind her seat. 

Starry skies. She took a pair of oars and another one as a spare. The delighted smile painting the face of the one seated across her shone just as beautifully as the floating lanterns scattered about in the near distance. They weren’t too far from the shore when Mishiro decided to stop, pull back the oars, and cast out her lure.

–?

Whatever it had latched onto was heavy, but it didn’t put up too much of a fight. She turned her head to the side and thought to give her companion a little warning (“Move back a little.”) before a crate strewn with seaweed landed on the space between them with a solid thunk.

Mishiro (LEVEL 15: 38 SP)   | HP: 300/300 | EN: 30/30 | DMG: 9   | MIT: 27 | HM: 2 | Rec.: 1

Spoiler Tempest T1 Perfect Two-Handed Battle Axe -- Damage III "Close your eyes. Let me be the violence in the pouring rain. I'll leave only the cursed lands in ruins, annihilate this final sin... all to reach for your hand once again." | [❄] Tenebris Nix T1 Perfect Heavy Armor -- Mitigation III [reference] Interlocking black iron plates held together with cloth and mesh, and combat boots of the same color and material. The main armor piece covers the user's torso and is especially cold to the touch. Reduces the damage taken by the user. Ebonguard T1 Perfect Heavy Armor -- Heavy Momentum II | Recovery I [reference] Black thigh-high boots. Steel covers its exterior and its knee plates bear the twin facades of a dragon. Always polished to perfection; always a little cold to the touch. | [❄] [battle-ready inventory:] Spoiler Teleportation Crystal Use a post action to activate a teleport crystal. Teleports the player to the town or designated teleportation area they specify. [x3] Starter Healing Potions Heals 50 HP. [skills:] Spoiler [used sp: 33 | unused sp: 5] 01. Two-Handed Battle Axe -- 3/5 02. Fishing  [sword arts:] Spoiler [r1:] [x2] Whirlwind (2 Energy) - A single sweeping attack so powerful that it sends forth a shock wave to hit again. [x2 AoE] Smash (2 Energy + 2 per target hit) - An uppercut aimed at opponents head to send them reeling. [r2:] [x3 AoE] Lumberjack (3 Energy + 2 per target hit) - Three wide sweeping strokes aimed at multiple targets. [x3] Ultimate Breaker (3 Energy) - A pair of uppercuts that finish with a vertical slam to the target's head. [r3:] [x5] Torque Wave (5 Energy) - A sweeping strike that tears into the opponent. [x6] Crimson Blood (6 Energy) - Three sweeping spinning slices keeping the same momentum. [x6 AoE] Trample Act (6 Energy +2 per target hit) - An attack that starts with a shoulder barge, then does two large sweeping attacks.

Mishiro blinked. 

"Oh? Go ahead." 

Perhaps she'd held her claim over the window for too long. Suddenly conscious, the girl stuck her hand in her coat pocket and shuffled away from the booth to stand a few paces behind him. For a moment, she let her sights drift somewhere else. As the streams of festival-goers began to thin, so did the clouds overhead: where they'd earlier fell from the skies in abundance, only the occasional snowflake would drift down to land on her glove. This magic wasn't built to last.

She brought her palms together, watchful gaze drawn to the ring her spun absently about his finger.

Round. And around. After enough twists, an empty locket's clasp sprang free. Mishiro folded a slip between her fingers and passed Father Wuotan's gift from one hand to the other behind her back. When the ring sailed forward, she'd happily reclaimed her place beside him. 

She watched in awe as his toss failed just as spectacularly as hers.

...And then he won?

A rewards selection screen appeared for him and she thought she felt a little of her competitive side flare up at the sight. In a single attempt, he'd stolen her thunder (if one could even call it that). "So that's how it's done?" Mishiro's expression could only be described as a rare mixture of wonder and envy. Hands tucked behind her back, she inched closer as the other indecisively scrolled through the assortment of fluffy prizes he could claim. "Like the trick used in bowling alleys...! Throw it an angle so that it rolls close to the channel then curves back to the center at some point to knock out all of the pins. I thought trying to apply that here would be a little too far-fetched though."

He tapped on an option. In a small burst of blue polygons, the reindeer she had been eyeing since they first came upon the booth dropped into his hands. It took her a moment to realize he was giving it to her.

The girl's expression softened.

"You... didn't have to." Another step closer. There was an inquisitive quality to her gray eyes when she peered up at him for a moment. Reading a little further beneath surface level was not a proficiency of hers, but that didn't mean she never wanted to try. "But, thank you. I have to apologize-- for putting you through the trouble of having to win this for me. I'll make sure to treasure it." Mishiro took the plush, holding it delicately as if it were a precious object made of glass. Its scarf was made out of felt, and it was soft. Her lips quirked into a small smile as she held the stuffed reindeer close to her chest. "This is like an early Christmas present."

She did have a name for this pleasant feeling.

Warmth.

"How about we see if I can win you something, too? Perhaps the fat cat in the corner." Lifting her gaze from her newest addition to her collection, Mishiro tilted her head. She let the words linger in the air before she waved it off as a jest. There was a beautiful lightness to the air that they'd slowly built up since Father Wuotan left them to wander about the fair themselves -- but she could never tell if it was just her. Taking note of the others in their vicinity, she stepped back. "We've spent enough time here, I believe. Shall we move on?"

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[quest: The Gemini]

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//stats and rolls placeholder for Blake to figure out the flow of the entire thread. no... they literally can't write without knowing the exact outcomes first. 

[...]

Mishiro (LEVEL 14: 34 SP)   | 280/280 HP | 28/28 EN | 12 DMG   | 42 MIT | 2 HM | 1 Rec.

Spoiler Tempest T1 Perfect Two-Handed Battle Axe -- Damage III "Close your eyes. Let me be the violence in the pouring rain. I'll leave only the cursed lands in ruins, annihilate this final sin... all to reach for your hand once again." | [❄] Tenebris Nix T1 Perfect Heavy Armor -- Mitigation III [reference] Interlocking black iron plates held together with cloth and mesh, and combat boots of the same color and material. The main armor piece covers the user's torso and is especially cold to the touch. Reduces the damage taken by the user. Ebonguard T1 Perfect Heavy Armor -- HM II | Recovery I [reference] Black thigh-high boots. Steel covers its exterior and its knee plates bear the twin facades of a dragon. Always polished to perfection; always a little cold to the touch. | [❄] [battle-ready inventory:] Spoiler [x5] Lacrimosa T1 Perfect Support Song -- HP Recovery III (Instant Effect) [reference] "Qua resurget ex favilla / Judicandus homo reus / Huic ergo parce, Deus." Hymn from Mozart's Requiem. The day of judgment is inevitable, yet mercy is all that shall descend for this hour.| [147462] [147465] [155058] [155040] [155041] [x10] Für Elise T1 Rare Support Song -- HP Recovery II (Instant Effect) [reference] Lingering sentiments. Wilted flowers, and a love that never came to be. | [145555] [152477] [152483] [152667] [152669] [152674] [152676] [156256]  [156270] [156273] [x5] Liebestraum No. 3 T1 Uncommon Support Song -- HP Recovery II (Instant Effect) [reference] "O lieb, so lang du lieben kannst."  | [147460] [145309] [145310] [148585] [155053] [x1] Le Gibet T1 Rare Debuff Song -- Lullaby II (Instant Effect) [reference] The sun sets on a dead man hanging from the gallows. Hearer, the bell tolls for thee. | [153420] [dimensional backpack:] [x1] Der Flohwalzer T1 Rare Debuff Song -- Hypnosis II (Instant Effect) [reference] Dance, and have your breath stolen away. | [153507] [buffs:] Spoiler Liquor of Light   T1 Perfect Potion -- Damage III A signature concoction of the Cintamani. The vial seems to glow a warm yellow, filled to the brim with translucent liquid sunshine. It tastes sweet when downed, reminiscent of maple syrup, though its flavour is diluted. Flows as easily as water. | [150850]  Divinity's Wait   T1 Perfect Potion -- Mitigation III "You see right through me." A bottle of white translucent liquid. It tastes like milk, though it flows like water. Its effects are unnoticable until pain kicks in, numbing the sensation even further than the system had originally intended. | [151853] [skills:] Spoiler [used sp: 23 | unused sp: 11] 01. Two-Handed Battle Axe -- 3/5 [sword arts:] Spoiler [r1:] [x2] Whirlwind (2 Energy) - A single sweeping attack so powerful that it sends forth a shock wave to hit again. [x2 AoE] Smash (2 Energy + 2 per target hit) - An uppercut aimed at opponents head to send them reeling. [r2:] [x3 AoE] Lumberjack (3 Energy + 2 per target hit) - Three wide sweeping strokes aimed at multiple targets. [x3] Ultimate Breaker (3 Energy) - A pair of uppercuts that finish with a vertical slam to the target's head. [r3:] [x5] Torque Wave (5 Energy) - A sweeping strike that tears into the opponent. [x6] Crimson Blood (6 Energy) - Three sweeping spinning slices keeping the same momentum. [x6 AoE] Trample Act (6 Energy +2 per target hit) - An attack that starts with a shoulder barge, then does two large sweeping attacks.

"...Thank you, but did I somehow give you both the wrong date for my birthday?"

Received.

[shop order:]

Item name: Tempest
Item type: T1 Perfect Two-Handed Battle Axe
Enhancements: Damage III
Description: "Close your eyes. Let me be the violence in the pouring rain. I'll leave only the cursed lands in ruins, annihilate this final sin... all to reach for your hand once again."

Item name: Ebonguard
Item type: T1 Perfect Heavy Armor
Enhancements: Heavy Momentum II - Recovery I
Description: [reference] Black thigh-high boots. Steel covers its exterior and its knee plates bear the twin facades of a dragon. Always polished to perfection; always a little cold to the touch.

700 * 2 = 1,400 col -- sent to @Vigilon.

At some point, her reflexes had set in and she softened her landing with a roll. Black boots scuffed against the ground, kicking up another storm of dust as Mishiro set one hand down for balance and skidded to a full stop. Miraculously, she still had her weapon with her. 

But the cornered Tree of the Winter was relentless. Another tremor, and vines erupted from the ground before her. The frosted appendages stretched straight up into the air, then gathered together into a single tendril and shot forward, spearing the player as more broke through the surface.

—Behind her, Mishiro's blood turned to ice.

"You... didn't—"

They had the same HP, didn't they—? Mishiro felt a stone cold grip close around her throat as the damage gradually reduced the unfamiliar player's health bar to nothing. She didn't even know her. Pretty soon, the player was almost completely enclosed in ice, and at the sound of something shattering, Mishiro resisted the urge to clap her hands over her ears and squeeze her eyes shut.

It wasn't her.

It wasn't her.

In the distance, the orange player had shaken herself from her stun and charged forward with a cry. And in front of her — her shield's HP was replaced with a yellow bar. 

...Well then.

Mishiro moved her hand from her teleport crystal. Warhammer in one hand, she wove past the stunned player. The Tree of the Winter was battered down, so close to dying, yet it was already poised for another attack. Fixing her attention on the hulking treant's mysterious second bar, the girl applied a [Freeze] effect to her weapon and slammed it into Winter's side.

Right. She… ‘got this.’ Determination glimmered in her eyes. Mishiro had felt a little inclined to apologize for the holdup, but after she snuck a glance at the second rare smile that had brightened his expression today, the idea was gladly set aside. “You look much friendlier when you make that face,” she commented nonchalantly. As the prompt disappeared at her fingertips, replaced by another ring, the girl exhaled softly and took a step back. “I guess watching can be a little fun…?”

Were his answer an affirmative, her selfish detour would’ve meant she’d somehow accidentally done something right. It confounded her.

–Quite expectedly though, she wasn’t about to get anything right with the simplest of fair games. Despite his encouragement, the second hoop landed inches short from the scoring area.

The scoring area.

Hardly had the pair processed the outcome than the buy-in window appeared before them once more. 

Mishiro was speechless. She resisted the thought of simply trudging off without another word, instead tugging her scarf up – if only to hide the red shade of embarrassment fluttering over her pale face. “This is fine. If I keep trying.” And the stall window disappeared before he could do anything. She’d never said she would definitely win a prize earlier, but she didn’t like the thought of walking away from her own detour empty-handed. Where would all the time have gone, then? “There should come a point where I finally hit one target, right?”

Two more rings later, and her theory was effectively disproved.