NIGHT

so she did. there was no reason to stay once their discussion had been done, except to exhaust the use of their buffs. granted, that would've been a lucrative experience, if however taxing. night wasn't the type of person to over exert herself where she could help it. hence, the walk. when koga pressed her about their status -- as friends, who'd just fought -- the woman nodded with a lukewarm hum. an argument, a heated debate -- one could view the same event in different contexts and label it otherwise. what differed here was that it ended amicably, night believed. judging form her f

seafood hadn't been her diet for a while. granted, because she'd mostly been shopping on the first floor with her housemate, that left some of the best catches untouched on the upper floors. nari must've seen the opposite side of the spectrum in that manner, missing out on the landmarks in between that worked well as a supplement to her diet. night steadied herself as she caught the woman, hand brushed past her back once she was assured her other was okay. listened enough. "sure, no fish and rice." repeated as though they were playing a game to tally their phrase count. "there's should b

night dipped her head to the side at the mention of rice. likewise, the same for whatever wasn't fish-related. that meant sushi from the previous day was...? she followed when lead, still thinking about their options. looking around the resort would result in a less-than-satisfactory experience for red meats, most likely, so she wondered if it was better for them to backtrack and head to a different floor. they had the time and resources. they could afford themselves to do so. a hand toggled through the menus, leading to summon a couple of blue crystals. as nari reached out for the h

well, it wasn't as though she couldn't behave herself. and knowing that her companion, too, was allowing her to pace themselves -- "okay," night whispered, voice almost strangled in her recovery. the follow up as a logical train of thought only aided her to cling onto reality where she thought she would be slipping. (the two players sighed. and night didn't register it; their intermingling of breaths, the release, the exhales.) her mind went to the purpose of the day. part of her was worried they'd forgotten, only challenged by the half that was certain this was meant to be the case.

“Fine. I will.” what came afterwards was like music. the world seemed to stop in time. and night could feel, could hear the realm around her breaking, shattering and falling away, yet she knew beyond her sights, her senses, that reality was still there. those lips were soft, so gentle, and everything around her felt warm. she closed her eyes. it was her. it was nari. it was the sun on the beach and the salty, briny air that continued to burn from the afternoon, now evening light. it was the feel of the others skin in her hands, on her fingertips. it was the closeness between tw

"y'know, it'd be kind of morbid if it did have anything to do with death and rebirth," night commented, tucking away the note. "or circle of life. aside from the birth part, anyway." her gaze was set to the road ahead, and what storms would await them from the darkening clouds above. it only spoke of rain that came a little too late, a little too far from their origin, that little medicine hut on the other side of the region. and it was on that note that she wondered what the next area would be like. when the downpour first started, she believed it to be akin to its namesake. ordsea, afte

now. it was only now that her energy was expended fully, completely. and night exhaled, in that acknowledgement, sword whisked away elsewhere as she forced herself to wait, patient. the undead would keep coming, for as long as they chose to stay here. and as much as she needed the gear, so too did the talk between two friends instill jitters under her skin. and night felt herself agitated, either by the heat of the floor, or the way the land lived. heart beating, blood pulsing, a breathing realm. she looked to koga, expression wrung dry of menace. there were traces of something aki

the conversation was welcome as a distraction from the mind. and she hummed, considering. night had believed she was the exact opposite. partially in due to laziness, but just the same that she couldn't keep her own in check had she not taken breaks when she did. and the work for a perpetual edge was cumbersome, company adamant -- there was always something better hidden between those days when there were friends around. hearing how nari had been neglecting the time outs, the player felt like she needed to squirm. and if her arms shifted, it was in due part to reach out and entangle her f

"i'd say." the first thing out of her mouth when entering the safe zone. as though for once, fear had released its constriction on her throat, finally allowing words to flow through. and she leaned in against nari, as motioned, though there was distance in her eyes. a nagging feeling in her that wouldn't go away. oh, how the sun glared its hue upon the waters. and the skies churned for it, bent to the whims of its majesty. for a moment, night bid herself drop her concerns, and the tension that once rested in her arms faded. that pressure fell onto nari instead, as the woman so wished

she was whirled around, world spinning in her vision, until her sights finally settled upon nari. and it caught her off-guard, night thrown out of her thoughts. “I don't want you to leave.” a bold declaration. likewise, that caught her off-guard, too. surprise matched seriousness, both sincere in nature. and night found herself breathless. for a moment, she wondered if it was a good thing, as though she wasn't dizzy enough. “If I had my way, there wouldn't be two houses." because despite the heat, the infatuation, the light, blinding, in the core of her vision -- night

continuing from koga's christmas party. ch'ang yue hua. wait, wasn't that a chinese name? night took her eyes off the cat for a moment, just so she could properly register that fact, and then they drifted to the player behind the little ball of fluff. "Or Kali. Just call me Kali." "yue hua," she repeated; foreign, like the syllables hadn't been uttered in a long time. and she wasn't great at the language, so immediately her attention drew to the characters involved. "like moon flower?" a terrible guess -- there was more intricacy to how the characters were pic

“Hey! NIGHT!” that damned voice. night willed herself not to turn around nor slow her pace. past the ice meant slippery snow, conditions wet, but she still allowed herself the haste nonetheless. had she continued walking, the player believed, perhaps the party would've assumed they got the wrong person. plus, night thought, it wasn't as though she'd been taking nyanko out on a walk recently. a completely different person, that 'night', she reasoned. the cat merely bristled at the lack of attention from his owner. it wasn't until her fears crept in about the attention that she fi

it hadn't even occurred to night the reason behind that time imposed was for dinner. she mulled over that revelation, then, considering the thought of a home-cooked meal. what was more likely to bother nari, she figured, was the awkwardness between them and onora, given that they were strangers known only through a single channel. and she was already cast as the improper outsider who had to be carried home after some reason or another. night closed her eyes, sighing. at least she wasn't obligated in the same way she figured she had been held to, by her partner's explanation. “Should

"huh." night would never have thought about it that way. it was true that the medicine hut may have been targeted for that purpose. though, were there not also other better locations to have set fires to instead? the thought sat in her mind as she pushed away the dish, finally complete with her meal, chewing what was left of the food in her mouth. she rose from her seat as she did. "well, time to get going!" day was the one to leave, first, given that the players still needed to drop col on the table. they shuffled out one after another, with the rationale on the pause in conversatio

a simple stroll. it almost felt as though after taking out that serpent from earlier, the rest of the flock that followed it had up and vanished. and night wasn't upset -- most definitely not -- but a part of her wished that the lesser creatures had stayed just so she could get that extra bit of loot in. she leaned back against nari, even when the bouncing had stopped. stilled only at the mention of-- “But if they have room service, we are definitely coming back one night. Got that?” her feet were still moving. night was efficient like that. but keeping her desires in and away f

perhaps, if night hadn't been so keen on resorts in video games as points of interest for content less so than enjoyment, she would've jumped to the same idea that nari had to begin with. at her question, she tilted her head, unremarkably, yet curious. "yeah? ...why not? it's not away from people, i guess." and before she had time to explain further about how it worked, the woman noticed the light that appeared on her companion's face, and it was blinding. almost. but the player was still thankful that she could still see. "uh-- i mean-- maybe?!" terrible. night flustered e

"we're going now," she breathed, almost dizzy from the thought of people. and her hand pressed closer into nari's, for a quick second, before they started off in earnest. “Did I…upset you?” in her quiet, she hadn't even realized the perception of her demeanor. clamming up on instinct, and the expression filled with tension. night only felt it when she heard the query fearful, loosening her jaw just slightly upon notice. and she wondered how to respond to that -- how to confess the lack of wrong doing on her companion's part -- because the matter was something else entirely. (the

so it had been on purpose. calculated, even. she shouldn't have had a reaction, like a serpent charged by its own venom; and yet to the contrary night did. no amount of realization would've gotten that red to leave. unfortunate. and when nari grabbed at her waist and kept her close, night let her, searing. "No. Absolutely. Not. No. Private showing only.” private showing. it echoed in her mind. like it was solely for entertainment. night couldn't stomach the thought. “And that goes two ways, miss.” she was quiet, like a dormouse. burning up so much she couldn't tell i

night raised a brow to her retort. "never said you said it." but the moment she caught that grin, she recoiled in surprise. “And who said anything about needing clothing for swimming, anyways?” "w-wait--" it must've been more common in other cultures, she rationalized. there must've also been a poor reason to have opted for that train of thought to begin with, because there wouldn't be a need for it had they brought the appropriate wear along. and night flustered, scowling, covering her mouth with one hand and grabbing nari's with her other, once she'd caught up from the woman'

had the serpent not knocked the wind out of her, then at least the hug from nari did. and her breath had been shaky on the exhale. night let the woman stay, a hand pressed to her head, gently running through her locks. how her tank hadn't looked worse from wear from the battle, she wouldn't know. “I swear if you die, I’ll kill you. Do not scare me like that.” night couldn't help but find herself sheepish. didn't she get mad, too, in the heat of battle. as though the spectrum of her emotions were on display -- "if it makes you feel any better," she reassured, wispy, "i don't have any

she hadn't watched nari fall in direct line with her opponent. rather, she'd seen it and registered the movement at the corners of her vision. instead, night's focus was straight at the boss. she knew it was coming. that singular strike, that moment of truth. like a flame lit inside her, agitated and upset at the tribulations the serpent put them through, she preened with fury, blade swung to one side. a running distance away from the target. she would make that leap across the beach towards it. it was only when night started to move that she felt that fire intensity, glowing. l

Thread Summary [total] Raidou + 30420 xp | 2340 * 13 + 4763 col | (xp * 0.15) + 200 NIGHT + 28080 xp | 2340 * 12 + 4414 col | (xp * 0.15) + 200

another swing, with all of the heft she could manage from it. close-ranged -- her blade's edge near the guard had finally seen use, perhaps the first time since the sword's debut in her hands. and night growled, in the way that ferocity should've been perfect for the woman, but instead what she got in return was the serpent lunging backwards, as though retreating -- -- and deciding to attack her, instead. a snap in her direction. night wasn't quick enough to shift -- and she knew, she knew it was going to be risky placing herself without distance from the enemy -- damn her for playin

night wouldn't remember the entire story afterwards. because, in here, she'd snapped. it started with a simple retaliation. one of many. perspective pitched against perspective. a simple narrative between two players. "The key word is allies. We simply do not have the luxury of catering to enemies hoping they will decide to be allies eventually." "that's wrong. hirru had afforded that luxury for himself at floor 23. he afforded it and that decision was turned against him afterwards." "Putting them down humanely is all we can do, and that is not limited to just the ca