[PP-F?] Breaktime (Keith, Kiru)

[Guest]

Keith raised an eyebrow and looked at Kiru. "Well, who's to say that we aren't going to do more after this? And besides, you're here, you ordered the cake, and now you can accept the enjoyment." Keith smiled and gave her a thumbs up. "C'mon, it's not like it'll kill ya!" He said, looking back to his own cake and eating again. In his own right, he wasn't entirely sure what she was so shifty about. Did she have some sort of childhood trauma with strawberries? Either way, Keith loved them.  And judging by how Kiru ordered them, she must have too. If not, she could have just as easily ordered anything else on the menu this place had. 

[Kiru 0]

What could we possibly do after this? Kill a field boss or something? I said, thinking out loud. There wasn't very much I liked doing here, I got bored often as well. Keith then gave me a thumbs up, which I thought was pretty dumb, and told me it wouldn't kill me. Actually it will kill me in a way...I said, looking at the piece of cake again. I huffed and sat up, staring icily at the sweet. I sighed and dug into my cake with with tiny fork. Instantly I tasted the sweetness of the cake and smiled, pleasure taking over. I ate another bite without saying anything. The taste of it was extremely good. My eyes gleamed as I looked up at Keith, who was eating his own cake. 

[Guest]

Keith blinked, and swallowed awkwardly, seeing Kiru's face light up like never before. "...Er... Are you okay?" Keith asked, slightly scared by Kiru's sudden transition. He knew she was tsundere to a certain degree, but he was surprised to see cake do more to her than he had the whole time they had known each other. Still, he DID get her the cake, so technically, this was totally his progress. And he took pride in that. "Ya know, you should smile more." Keith said, taking another forkfull of cake and smiling back at her.

[Kiru 0]

Of course I'm okay, why? I asked, looking up from the little slice of heaven in front of me. I downed a little bit of my water before continuing to eat the cake that Keith had gotten for me. It was delicious beyond my satisfaction. The last time I had this good of cake was when I was with Jun, but I was totally normal as I ate, or at least I thought. Keith looked genuinely confused at first when I ate the cake but then he said the oddest thing, that I should smile more. I shook my head. Smiling does no good around you people like you Keith, I replied. ...because you would know when I'm faking it or not. I grinned a little and looked up. Even though I was happy at this moment and I felt like I could tell him anything, I chose not to. If I spilled everything going inside myself then my entire wall that I built would break down. I let that wall waver once for someone and they completely smashed it. I choose not to smile. I thought, eating the last hunk of strawberry on my plate. The cake wasn't even having a full effect on me anymore because I began to die down about and basically diminished my whole positive attitude. It lasted only about a minute but Keith caught a glimpse of the never before seen side of Kiru, and that made my cheeks burn bright.

[Guest]

Keith crossed his arms and tilted his head slightly. "Huh... So... There is a positive Kiru in there..." He said, a smile trying to play upon his lips as his emerald eyes glimmered. Keith had finished his cake while Kiru was happily drawn in by her's, and he had already planned out what they would go do next. "Okay, Kiru. Next we're going to head back out of town, just outside the wall." Keith said, plucking Ruby off of his shoulder and cradling him, tickling his stomach as Ruby yipped with excitement, squirming about in his arms. Keith laughed little as he played with the Carbuncle.

[Kiru 0]

I folded my hands and rested my chin upon them. I laughed just a little to myself when Keith's familiar was summoned again. It was always to hyper- just like Keith. He then mentioned where we were going next on our wild adventure, to the outskirts. I flicked my eyes to the right and sighed. And what business would we have there? You do know that's were most of the crime sprouts right? It's just outside the safezone, perfect for PKing..I said, closing my eyes and standing up. You lead the way. I trust we'll run there? I asked and leaned against the back of the booth and waited for Keith to get up. 

[Guest]

Keith nodded, standing up and looking to Kiru. "Yup! We'll be there in a jiffy!" He said, dashing off and expecting, and partially knowing, that Kiru was right behind. He exited the shop and ran down the street, not going at top speed, but still fast enough to make good time. Speed was his most well-known trait, after all. He turned a corner and headed out of the town, outside the walls. Keith then stopped out on the road, skidding to a halt. "And here we are." Keith said, motioning to a small settlement by the wall, just off the road. In it, there were plenty of small critters playing around in a pen, just in front of a small cottage. Behind the cottage, there were a few gray stones protruding from the ground, seemingly kept in rows. 

[Kiru 0]

...So, you expect me to just follow you? I asked, mainly just talking to myself. Keith had already left the coffee shop and once againt gained unwanted attention. Though when he left, the eyes were turned expectantly towards me. I glared at the first pair of worried eyes I met and picked up into a run. I began to pick up the pace and saw Keith turn right in the distance. Once I got to the path I assumed he took I ducked right and sprinted into the dark alley. After escaping the darkness I stopped abruptly to keep myself from plowing right into Keith. I shot him a look and huffed outwards, all while noticing the small house-like structure in front of us. What is it? I asked, partially wondering if there were any dogs around the building.

[Guest]

Keith kept a straight face as he walked over to the gate, opening it slowly and stepping in. A crowd of the small animals gathered around his leg, and Keith smiled, petting some of them. "This is the familiar daycare. When a player dies, their familiar is sent here. Naturally, they're tame and couldn't survive on their own. Plus, once one is tamed, a different player cannot tame it again and make it their own." Keith said, looking over to Kiru as a small dog trotted over to him. Keith smiled and scratched the dog behind the ears, making the golden retriever's tail wag happily. "Anyway, they're still friendly, and a lot of fun. Plus, they need to attention." Keith said, as he saw a few familiars look at Kiru.

[Kiru 0]

Ah, I see. So no one can claim them? I asked while stepping forward ever so slightly. The animals needed attention but I was certain they'd rather have Keith so I just hung back for a few moments. Then, a dog trotted out and greeted Keith. My heart instantly jumped, the dog was extremely cute! I kept my eyes trained on the dog, I wanted to pet it really badly,  and the urge was killing me. Almost as if there was a force pulling us together I stepped forward and patted the front of my legs. I whistled, looking hesitantly at it. The dog's ears perked up and it looked at me with it's tongue sticking out. The dog came bounding over so I got on my knees and scratched it behind the ears and around the neck. The dog wagged it's tail with glee and began to lick my face. I started to smile and stare it right in the eye. Good boy. I said, completely distracted by the animal now. 

[Guest]

Keith smiled and let Kiru pet the dog. He moved his hand over and pet a little red mouse, who had a little flame on the tip of his tail. "Yeah... That dog's name is Dexter. His owner just vanished one day. So naturally, he wound up here." Keith said, letting Ruby off of his shoulder to go play with other animals. "It's really sad... Most familiars give their lives to protect their owners. Most of these ones didn't have the chance to do that." Keith said a little sadly, a small rock creature, about the size of a basketball, waddled up to him. He smiled again and rubbed colored crystals that came from the creature's back with his sleeve, making it lay on his leg and make a purring sound, which really sounded like the low rumble of moving gravel.

[Kiru 0]

I looked down at the dog and froze. Dexter? I instantly remembered that name, and so did the dog. The dog wagged it's tail harder and put it's paw on my lap, asking to be pet. My lips formed a straight line before I spoke. Keith, the owner of this dog isn't dead is he? His name is Cody, username of DylanDX. I met him a while ago and ended up keeping his dog for a bit...He never came back for his dog but it followed Dav around so I left it. I informed Keith, none of the story made sense to Keith probably because he wasn't there and didn't know the people I was talked about. My hand involuntarily began to pet the dog again slowly as I processed the information given- Cody had died? 

[Guest]

Keith blinked and thought for a bit. He didn't know a Cody. â€‹"Eh... Well... Not all familiars here are just from dead owners. Some were just abandoned. So... There's still hope." Keith said, looking over to Kiru. "But... There's one more part to this place." He said, standing up and exiting the fenced area. He began to walk behind the cottage, to the area that had all the rows of stones. While he didn't tell Kiru what it was, the rows of stone markers would easily give away what this area was. Some had flowers laid in front of them, and others would have cards or small treats scattered around the base.

[Kiru 0]

Hm. I responded, partially taking it all in. It was nostalgic to see Cody's dog but to hear that it had been abandoned? That wasn't settling very well with me. I got up and brushed off the front and back of my tights. The dog's ears drooped as I walked around to the back. I closed the fenced off area to ensure the animals didn;t get out. Next, I looked at what Keith was speaking of. There were rows of stone with flowers, candies, or cards on them, they were graves. I glanced at Keith, wondering if he was trying to see what I would do right now. Finally, I spoke after a long silence. Do you know any of the names here? I inhaled deeply from my nostrils and stared at the markers. 

[Guest]

Keith walked along the graves, as if he had been through them plenty of times. "Yeah... I know one..." Keith said, looking them over. Each on had a familiar's name, and then the owner's underneath it. Keith stopped at one marker, which was a white marble stone. It had blue flowers placed around it, all of which had wilted. Keith knelt down and looked at the name. "-Startorius-" "-Keith-". He looked down, sighing sadly before looking back up again at the marker. "I-...I'm so sorry, buddy... S-Sometimes, I think i-if I had done something differently- Then-" Keith stopped himself and looked down again. Not many people knew he had a familiar before Ruby. "I- I-..." He chocked up, closing his eyes and clenching his jaw as he felt a few tears run down his cheeks.

[Kiru 0]

I traced behind Keith slowly until he stopped at one of the stones. Engraved into the stone were the names Keith and Startorious. I read it over again and realized that Keith's familiar had died, that the weird one that was always on his shoulder wasn't his first one. My icy eyes widened when I saw the look on Keith's face. K-Keith? Tears fell from his face, he was trying to hold it in. His expression was almost the same as when he told be about his father. I opened my mouth to say something but nothing came out. I knelt down next to Keith and folded my hands in my lap silently. After a few moments I glanced again at him and sighed. Keith...I ah..Do you want to leave? I asked, trying to make him happier. It pained me in a weird way to see Keith look so sad. I couldn't explain it.

[Guest]

Keith just sat there, his eccentric attitude crumbling as he sat in front of his first familiar's grave. Keith always blamed himself for his first familiar's death. When he heard Kiru's voice, all he could think to do was just put his arms around her and hug her, burying his face into her shoulder. Sure, Keith knew she would most likely smack him, he just needed the human contact. Anything to let him know he wasn't at the grave alone. "W-...Why did this game have to happen?" He rasped out, not daring to pull away from her shoulder. Keith and Kiru became partners. Even when this bond had been founded, Keith had his doubts about himself being able to uphold it. He had lost a companion before. And he didn't have complete faith in himself that he could protect Kiru.

[Kiru 0]

Keith's sudden embrace confused me. I sat there for a moment, unmoving and shocked as he buried his head in my shoulder. His tears felt cold against my skin when the trickled down my shoulder and soaked into the clothe of my dress. I looked down at Keith, his image had changed. Instead of the vivid teenage with no worries, there was a sobbing one with no optimism in him. I bit my cheek hard, causing it to bleed, and made my hands into fists. This was another time I felt nervous, but this time I didn't know what to do. I relaxed my hands and slowly brought them around Keith, returning his hug. I closed my eyes and calmed down. Keith, this game was created to satisfy one's boredom, to screw with other peoples' lives. Everyone who bought the copy- or even won the copy- didn't know the consequences. But ya know, I've had fun here...I spoke softly, surprising myself with the way I could handle situations like this. 

[Guest]

He was actually set back slightly by how gentle Kiru could be. In fact, he felt like he really could just let it all out with her. Keith hugged her a little closer and then mumbled something into her shoulder. "...Jag gillar dig, okej..?" He mumbled, clearly speaking his native language. He sat back up, and wiped his eyes with his sleeve. "Thanks, Kiru... I'm sorry I put so much of this on you..." He said, still sitting on his knees with her. Keith didn't like talking about his original familiar, but now... He felt like a weight had been taken off of him. And the person who had removed it, was Kiru. 

[Kiru 0]

I felt a slight squeeze and muffled voice. Keith said something, in Swedish maybe? I wasn't very good at languages so I couldn't decipher exactly what he said. I then let out a choked laugh, forcing myself not to start crying. Not meaning to offend you but I don't know what you said...I whispered quietly before he pulled away. I held up my hands while tilting me head to the side a little. N-no, it's okay. As long as you don't expect me to start telling you about stuff like that too..I said, trying to bring just a smidge of humor into the situation now that Keith wasn't as upset. I bent my head forward and felt something slide off, it was my crown. I scrambled and caught it before it hit the ground and held it in between my fingers. I smoothed a bent petal then placed the crown onto the stone gently. I looked over at Keith and smiled brightly. Mainly the smile was meant to cheer Keith up.