[F28] I Really Want to Stay at Your House

[Jomei 0]

 

  

Jomei the emerald duelist

Spoiler notes Level: 34 | Paragon: 83 | Tier: 4(12)  Jomei | HP: 1000/1000 | EN: 138/138 | DMG: 21 | MIT:44 | ACC:3 | TAUNT | F-SPIRIT | EVA:4 | BH:55 | HB: 44 | VAMP-D: 110 | BLI: 32/-20  | LD:1  Equipment: Vicious Mockery : ACC II | Taunt | Blight  Fencer's Regalia - Trepidation: Vamp D II | HB | MIT  Token of Serenity: HB| EVA III   equipped Vicious Mockery Fencer's Regalia - Trepidation Token of Serenity battle-ready inventory skills Spoiler Skills Rapier R5 | TECH Spec. Combat Mastery DMG R3 Cloth Armor R5 Charge B Healing R5 Energist MA R2 Howl Fighting Spirit Quick Change Extra: Concentration Survival   Parry Forgotten King's Authority Assault Mode  Lady Luck Meditation Mods Athletics Emergency Recovery Vengeful Riposte Justified Riposte Addons Stamina  Focus Precision Nimble Focused Howl data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== buffs Spoiler Housing Buffs Well Rested: -1 energy cost for the first three expenditures of each combat     Squeaky Clean: The first time you would suffer DoT damage in a thread, reduce damage taken from DoT each turn by 25% (rounded down)     Tasty: Turn 2 identical food items (same quality, tier, & enhancements) into a Lesser Feast. Relaxed: Increases out of combat HP regen by (5 * Tier HP) and decreases full energy regen to 2 Out of Combat Posts. Filling: Increase the effectiveness of a single food item consumed in a thread by +1 T1 slot. This can exceed normal Cook enhancement caps.  Multipurpose: Gain +1 to LD, Stealth Rating, Stealth Detection, or Prosperity to one post in a thread. Can be applied after a roll Item Stash: +1 BRI slot Advanced Training: +10% EXP to a thread. Limit one use per month. Must be used on a player's first post in a thread. Cooldown begins counting down when used in a post. data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw==

 

Midnight, possibly, or close to it. The suns light had faded hours ago and the red canopy that made up the Fire Forest were a much less brilliant color in the dull moonlight. Branches swayed in the wind, the rustling of their leaves sounding very much like the pattering of rain - a sound that he had grown sick of after countless days fighting off wave after wave of monsters on the 29th floor. Jomei needed a break, even if just a day, just some time to rest and recuperate. None of them would be able to continue fighting if they continued like this.. and with all of the curveballs they had been pitched on that hellscape of a floor, who knows what tomorrow could bring. Nothing was ordinary about this floor, and the looming threat of the next floor boss was no different. The fight could be days away, it could be hours. They wouldn't know until the time came.

Despite how much his body wanted to give out, how every muscle and bone that made up his virtual form ached, he could not find sleep.

Jomei sat on the edge of his bed, staring down at the floorboards. With everything going on he needed something.. something real and concrete that he could anchor himself down to, before he was carried away by the stress and uncertainty of it all. Lower lip between his teeth, he would gently bite down as he hesitantly summoned his menus with a small flick of his finger. "I need to see her.." he would say to himself, his voice nearly a whisper. 

Hey, you up?  No, this wasn't some late night booty call.
Can we talk? Three of the most stressful words anyone could hear, definitely not.

Quote

To: Lessa

Hey,

Sorry I hope this message doesn't wake you up if you're sleeping.  I've got a lot on my mind.. boss fight and all that. You know, usual stuff for frontliners like us.

((Humor doesn't carry over so well in text..))

I'm having one of those restless nights. Funny how life does that, huh? Work yourself to the bone, and when you finally hit your pillow, you can't find sleep. 

((Now he was just stalling and rambling..))

Can we meet up? If you're awake, that is. I need the distraction and well, if I'm being honest. I don't really want to be alone tonight. Not like that but I just..

I could really use my favorite person right now. 

Jomei

 

[Lessa 1]

Quote

To: Jomei

Knock knock.

Lessa

It took a few minutes. Perhaps he was in the middle of something, or he didn't immediately understand the point of her message. But when he finally swung open his front door, he found her smiling up at him. "Special delivery!" she declared, wiggling her shoulders excitedly. "One order of your favorite person!" Then she lifted up a plastic bag in the space between them. "And also ice cream! Because shitty nights call for ice cream."

Without waiting for an invitation, she slipped under his arm and scooted to his kitchen. Though their relationship was still new, she had been over to his house enough times to remember where to find it. And what a gorgeous kitchen it was, all clean and practically shining beneath the artificial lights. She couldn't see it, but she knew that just beyond the big windows, the Fire Forest sprawled in all directions. It was, in a word, spectacular. He'd done a fantastic job with it, and the Château de Feu was an enormous step-up from his old apartment in Taft. Someone as impressive as Jomei deserved a home that matched his brilliance.

She ventured a glance over her shoulder at the man as she plopped the bag down on his counter. As the damp plastic landed, a half dozen pints clunked against each other, and one rolled free of its non-biodegradable bonds. "I didn't know what you liked," Lessa hurried to explain. "So I grabbed, uh, mint chocolate chip, butter pecan, rocky road, cookie dough, cookies and cream, and-" she lunged for the final pint, scooping it up before it could yeet itself of the counter, "-strawberry. Well, the cookie dough is for me. But the others are for you."

As she tucked the runaway container back in the bag, she gave him a devilish grin. It softened, along with her eyes, the longer she looked at him. Finally, she added, "I'd be willing to share my cookie dough with you, I guess."

꧁༺Lessa༻꧂   Lessa, Guardian of Aincrad True Tier: 10 Level: 34 Paragon Level: 60 HP: 980/980 EN: 130/130 Stats: Damage: 18 Mitigation: 127 Battle Healing: 29 Stealth Rating: -5 HB: 39 MENDING: 2 REC: 8 HLY: 8 Equipped Gear: Weapon/Armor/Trinket:    - Arcael's Might (T4 THSS - DMG DMG DMG HLY)                                                                                                         Armor/Trinket:    - Vega's Panoply (T4 HA - THNS THNS HB HB)                                                                                                              Shield/Armor/Trinket:    - Red Tide Beacon - Venus (T4 TRINKET - LM LM REC REC) Combat Mastery:   - Combat Mastery: Mitigation R3 Combat Shift:   - ST Shift Familiar Skill:   - Rending Familiar Skills:   - Battle Healing R3   - Energist   - Extended Weight Limit   - Heavy Armor R5   - Straight Sword R3 Extra Skills:   - First Aid R5   - Leadership R5 Addons:   - Field Medic   - Hyperactive   - Iron Skin Mods:   - Barrier   - Energize   - Inspiring Speech   - Large Pockets   - Press the Attack Battle Ready Inventory:   - Blessing of the Wood x4   - Chocolate Truffles (T4 Vitality II Desserts) x13   - Congealing Ale (Tierless Antidote Salves) x4   - March to the Dawn (Instant HP Recovery 3) x14   - Rumbling Rum Party Favor (Tierless Mass HP Recovery Crystals) x13   - Teleportation Crystal x14   - Tiger's Balm (Tierless Antidote Salves) x1 Housing Buffs:   - Master Bedroom: -1 energy cost for the first three expenditures of each combat   - Bathroom: The first time you would suffer DoT damage in a thread, reduce damage taken from DoT each turn by 20% (rounded down)   - Living Room: Increases out of combatHP regen by (5 * Tier HP) and decreases full energy regen to 2 Out of Combat Posts.   - Attic (Storage): +5% bonus col from monster kills and treasure chests   - Mega Slime Farm: +10% EXP to a thread. Limit one use per month. Must be used on a player's first post in a thread. Cooldown begins counting down when used in a post.   - Basement: Gain +1 to LD, Stealth Rating, Stealth Detection, or Prosperity to one post in a thread. Can be applied after a roll Crafting Profession:  - Blacksmith[465exp] R6 Gathering Profession:  - Forager[0exp] R1

[Jomei 0]

Fwoosh

Small flames ignited in a ring around the burner just under the cast iron grates. Over time, the heat from the wood burning stove would bring the water within the lavender kettle to a boil. But as all good things, it required some time and patience. He wanted to wait to see if he would get a message back anyway.. although he held his doubts. Sighing heavily, he would lean his rear end against the table across the kitchen and just.. stare. The orange of the fire reflected off of his olive green eyes as the ginger watched the flames dance within their black iron cell. Perhaps the tea would help calm his racing mind or help him find sleep at last. 

Steam began to pour from kettle, the whistle at the mouth pulling him from his trance. Good thing too, for he would have missed the notification for an incoming message to his inbox. "Knock knock?" Jomei would repeat, tilting his head curiously. Had she gotten his message and actually... showed up at his house? Lessa was one of the few that actually knew of his new home on the twenty eighth floor, so it wasn't out of the question. But to traverse through the dark forest at this hour. The growing flutter in his chest picked him up from his lean to move towards the door.. doubling back to remove the kettle from the stove and snuffing out the fire within.

Opening the door, wearing an unbuttoned, charcoal henley and some black joggers he smiled down at the unexpected blonde. "Express shipping and everything. How much is this going to cost me?" Something about the way she entered his home, passing through the genkan (one of the few aspects of Japanese culture that he mixed into his home) and into the kitchen.. How she moved with such a familiarity and comfort being in his space, without waiting for Jomei was a comfort in itself. So with a bright smile, he followed her into the kitchen to get a glimpse of her haul. 

Various flavors of ice cream nearly rolled out of a bag as she set it down on the counter, claiming one for herself. Jomei narrowed his eyes at Lessa before taking small steps towards her, "And.. what if I said that cookie dough was my favorite?" his tone playfully threatening. Using his height to his advantage, he looked down at her for a moment before reaching into the bag and snatching the pint of mint chocolate chip for himself. "I guess I'll settle for my second favorite." That was a lie, mint chocolate was his favorite. Taking the other containers of ice cream Lessa had brought, he would place them into a freezer box, "I ever tell you that you're the best?" he'd say over his shoulder. After taking out a spoon for Lessa, and another for himself, he opened another cupboard over his stove. "Tea?" he asked, placing two mugs on the counter. "I've got plenty of different flavors." 

 

[Lessa 1]

"Won't cost you a thing," she countered cheerfully. "And whatever ice cream we don't eat tonight will just go back in my freezer. To be consumed later. By me. Probably in one sitting." She was so busy chattering away, adjusting the pints of ice cream in the plastic bag, that she missed his approach. But she certainly did not miss the playful gleam in his eye when she finally turned to him, and let her gaze climb up. "Normally, I would fight you for it," she replied matter-of-factly. "Tooth and nail, to the death. It would be brutal." Lessa placed an unnecessary amount of emphasis on the word, drawing it out as if she were doing some sort of dramatic reading. "Buuuuuut, because I like you, I'd give you a bite." She expertly popped the top off the pint with one hand, the other going for the spoons. Offering one to Jomei, she plunged the other into her ice cream. "Good thing that's not what happened though, huh?"

She watched him appraisingly as he made his selection, then nodded her approval. "The man in green goes for the mint. It's so fitting." Her head tilted slightly as she studied him further. "Well, not in green right now," she amended. "The gray's nice. I'm just so used to seeing you in green, y'know?" Lessa paused to glance down at her own attire - black yoga pants and a royal blue hoodie. "I, on the other hand, remain predictable."

She turned her back to the counter, and nearly propped herself up onto it before she remembered where she was. No, she would not plop her ass onto someone else's kitchen counter, regardless of how well she knew him. Would she climb onto her own counter to eat her ice cream if she were at home? Absolutely - she did it last night. But not here. Scanning the kitchen for somewhere else to sit, her eyes landed on the two mugs, and his question finally registered.

"Ah, no thank you," she answered, expression growing sheepish. "Unless you've got like one of those apple cider mixes, or hot chocolate, maybe?" Her free hand went to her head, fingers raking through her hair as she looked from the steaming mugs to Jomei, then back again. "I'm sorry, I've just never been a tea drinker."

Guilt for making him needlessly dirty a mug nagged at her, but she escaped it by dropping into a chair at the kitchen table. She stared out the dark window for a moment, her reflection staring back, before she commented, "It's really late. Not that I mind coming over - I mean, I love coming over, no matter what time it is. But, yeah." She spooned some ice cream into her mouth, allowing the comment to hang between them for a few seconds before she asked, "Are you doing okay?"

[Jomei 0]

"Merciful and generous?" Taking the spoon from Lessa's grasp with pinched fingers, he would scrape the top of the ice cream - making sure to snag a couple of cookie dough pieces along the way. "I don't deserve such kindness." he would reply in an equally dramatic tone before sliding the spoon into his mouth. "Mmm" his eyes close as he savors the taste, nodding his head. "Might just be tasty enough to fight you over."  He would smile down at her one last time before finally taking his own pint of ice cream and putting away the others.

As he moved some of the various boxes, jars and cans around in the cabinet, he would look back over his shoulder at Lessa once more for a moment. The comfortable looking, blue sweater that she usually frequented when not in her armor. "Well, if its any consolation.." finally finding the clear jar he was looking for, filled with amber colored teabags within, he would place it on the counter next to mugs. "I don't think I've seen you in anything but your armor for the past... well, ever since its been all hands on deck with Floor Twenty Nine." Pouring hot water from the kettle into both mugs - despite Lessa's refusal for tea - he would place a bag from the jar into each of the mugs to let them steep. Turning to face her once more, his shoulders rose and fell with a shrug. "And I'm sure you don't need me to tell you that you look great in whatever you wear." 

Another two jars on the counter, one with cinnamon sticks the other with honey. He would add a stick and a dollop to each of the ceramic cups before handing one to Lessa. "I won't be offended if you don't drink it, promise. When I was stocking up in Glyndebourne after moving in, I found someone who sells this apple cider.. tea, if you want to call it that. Might not be as potent as the real deal.. but its pretty close. Though, her actual apple cider is to die for." A soft exhale would pass through parted lips as he leaned against the counter where the mugs once rested. 

"Are you doing okay?"

A loaded question, one he figured he would eventually be faced with for asking to see her this late at night. Breaking eye contact, he would look to the space just beside her as he thought of just what to say. The pointed tip of his canines gently gnawed at the tip of his tongue. All at once, like a puppet being released from its taught strings, Jomei's shoulders relaxed and his head dropped with a heavy.. heavy sigh. 

"Yes.. No? Honestly its just... We've fallen into the same routine with every floor. Clear the boss, take some time to enjoy and explore the floor, find the next boss. Rinse and repeat. This is the first time things have been different in what feels like.. hell, years?" he didn't want to admit how long it felt it was taking them to clear Aincrad and return to their real bodies and lives, but at this point they were all thinking it. "Normally I'd welcome any sort of change but.. so many people's lives are at stake with how fucked up that floor is and now these monsters that can travel floors?" His olive eyes would finally find hers again as he pushed his long ginger locks from the front of his face, holding it atop his head for a moment before letting them haphazardly fall back into place. "I guess its just the uncertainty of it all, and the stress of realizing how many lives are depending on us clearing this boss.. whenever we find it. I'm just scared for what tomorrow might bring at this point."

"..and that's why I wanted to see you. Not to play therapist, but because whatever this-" Jomei would gesture with a finger back and forth between Lessa and himself, "-is.. feels real." 

[Lessa 1]

"It is real!"

She bit the words out with far more intensity than she intended; the sheer force of the statement launched her out of the chair and onto her feet. As the sound of her shout died away, and she realized just how she'd filled his whole house with it, she felt a blush begin to climb her neck. But she wouldn't back down from it - she'd spent far too long backing down from it.

"It feels real because it is real," she insisted, though this time, her voice had dropped about thirty decibels. They stared at each other across the kitchen, the silence and the space still humming with her declaration, and... something else. As they stood opposite each other, squared off like rival gunslingers, she would have sworn she felt her body drawn to his. A link gapping the distance between them, nearly imperceptible, but there nonetheless. She'd felt it that day on the fourth floor, and so many times since. And if she were honest with herself, she'd felt it's presence before, too. In his studio in Taft. On the deck of the airship. In the grove on floor twenty-seven, dangling beside him as the guardian kicked their ass a second time.

The urge to go to him now, to brush that beautiful red hair back from his face, ached like a physical wound. But the weight of the world pressed down on him, and experience had taught her that while hugs and platitudes were often welcome, they weren't always the most efficient way of clearing the air. So she plunged her hands into her hoodie pocket and said, "I'm scared too, Jom. After watching Alkor die in a boss fight, I've never really been able to get out of my own head while I'm there. I mean, I can make jokes while I'm fighting, and try to keep it light-hearted, but there's always this sort of pressure on my chest. It makes it so I can't take a deep breath, because what if I lose someone else? Someone I love? It took me years to climb out of the pit Alkor's death King Leonidas-ed me into. I don't want to watch anyone else die, and I don't want to go back to being that person again."

Lessa withdrew her hands from her pocket and retrieved her pint from where she'd left it on the table. She traced a squiggly line into the top of the ice cream, watching the chunks of cookie dough surface, mostly to give her hands something to do. "I kind of compare the Frontlines to teaching," she finally stated. "You do it for the kids. For the other teachers, to take the stress off of them. For the whole world, if you look at it that way. You're changing the course of the future, and preparing the next generation for their turn at running things. That's a huge honor, and a tremendous responsibility." A crease formed across her forehead as Lessa scowled down into her ice cream. "But at what cost, you know? The burnout is so bad. Morale is at an all-time low. My coworkers were miserable, and I watched them neglect their families and themselves for 'the greater good'. Was it worth it?"

With a gusty sigh, she looked back to him, then loosed a small shrug. "I know that doesn't really help, but... I guess it's just the idea that this pressure isn't entirely foreign. Even if everyone's depending on us, we can't lose ourselves in our attempt to save them. If this were the classroom, wouldn't we walk away until our mind was in the right place? Or at the very least, cut ourselves some slack if we aren't able to reach everyone, or do everything, all at the same time? That's a huge ask, for anyone."

She took a bite of ice cream as she thought over her next words. "You're right, things are super up in the air right now. A lot of unknowns. But we shouldn't be too hard on ourselves for not knowing everything. Its not fair, and it's not healthy. Whatever tomorrow brings, we're going to figure it out."

Finally, she allowed herself to give in. Lessa closed the distance between him, set her ice cream on the counter, and took both of his hands in hers. "I have this mantra. It's 'tomorrow will be better.' I live by it, and I believe in it, because I need something to believe in. I don't know what this boss fight is going to look like, but I know we'll come out of it stronger, because tomorrow will be better."

[Jomei 0]

There was no need for reassurance, he was already certain that these feelings he and Lessa shared were genuine and concrete. From the moment they had kissed, possibly even before that, Jomei knew the bond the two had shared had blossomed into something more. His lips still curled into a soft smile that found his lines despite. 

And yet, hearing the words from her lips felt just as sweet as feeling that realization for the first time. 

"Yeah. It is real." he repeated, his hushed voice matching the volume of Lessa's. 

Hovering a hand over the mug that rested next to him, he would test the heat of his drink. Steam rose from the cup, warming his palm as it collected the condensation. Still a bit too hot for his liking. Instead, he took the container of ice cream and held it. A stark contrast in temperature, but it was welcomed. He would gently twist the lid, without really thinking about it, as if it were opened like a jar. Just fidgeting as he provided Lessa his full attention, listening to her response. As he finally managed to remove the lid via mindless twisting, he would take a small bite of the ice cream. He'd hold the spoon in his mouth for a few moments longer before returning it to the pint for a second scoop. 

"We've been doing all of this for so long that I nearly forgot you were a teacher." he would admit, somewhat sheepishly. "But, I completely understand what you're getting at, and really could not have said it any better myself."

Olive eyes would brighten with a sort of anticipation as he watched Lessa move into his space. Hands cold from holding onto the ice cream containers for too long would quickly warm up as they joined together. His eyes would trail down to their conjoined hands for but a short moment before rising to meet her cerulean gaze once more. 

"..because tomorrow will be better."

 A curious hum rumbled in his throat as he pondered on her words. "Hm.." Gentle thumbs caressed the tops of her knuckles, thankful that they were not clad in silver gauntlets for once. "How do you do that?" he would ask her, staring down at her hands once more before bringing them to his lips to gently kiss them.  "Always knowing what to say?" he spoke into her knuckles as he looked her in the eyes once more. Releasing her hands back to her sides, he would slide his arms around her waist, wanting to hold her even closer. Finding comfort in the crook of Lessa's neck, that lingering scent of lilacs and citrus -with notes of chocolate chip cookie dough- filled his nostrils. 

"I needed this." His voice muted as he spoke into the fabric of her hood, melting into the solace of her embrace. ".. I've needed this for so long." 

Finally raising his head from her shoulder, he would smile down at her before gesturing with a nod of his head. "Come on, there's plenty of more comfortable places to sit than the kitchen." With paperboard container back in his hand, he would lead Lessa through an open doorway into the main living space. Before they would reach the comfortable looking sofas that flanked a coffee table, Jomei would stop and turn to face the blonde. "Oh, that reminds me. I don't think I've shown you one of my favorite spots in this house." Opening a sliding door at the opposite end of the room would reveal a spiraling staircase, leading up to the tallest point in the manor. The single tower was visible from the outside of the house, standing another story above his second floor. Pushing their way through another door at the top, Jomei would step to the side to allow Lessa to enter the study. 

Shelves of books lined one and a half of the walls, a small set of stairs and a balcony allowing access to those much higher out of reach. A window ledge sofa sat beneath a large set of windows, offering the perfect view of the tops of the fire-colored trees. Plush pillows and throw blankets thrown about the couch in a chaotic way, signs of Jomei constantly finding the need to switch his style of sitting. An armchair and writing desk occupied the opposite side of the space, a violin and a guitar resting on respective stands on either side of the desk. Hanging from the center point of the ceiling, or floating was a better term, an illuminated orb that he could dim and adjust as he needed.

"Its not nearly as vast as Ronbaru's library, but I still find myself lost up here some days. Reading, composing, or just if I want to feel disconnected from the world..." he would point to the window, "Its a hell of a view during the day."