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Post by Deleted on Aug 13, 2014 22:51:13 GMT -5
Art wasn't something James was an expert in, not by any stretch of the imagination. He enjoyed it, appreciated it, and how he wished he could create it! But he didn't know much about it. He had never studied it extensively; he barely could stay awake during the art portion of his humanities class. (Though not for a lack of interest, more of a lack of sleep and an incredibly boring teacher.) And though he appreciated it, he didn't always quite understand it. Maybe it was because he didn't have much going for him in the imagination department, or maybe he really was as stupid as that one kid said. Either way, he often struggled trying to interpret art of just about any kind, and today was no exception.
Well, in a way he understood it. He knew about the Shinigami, from not only his parents but from briefings during his classes. So yes, it was perfectly understandable as to why there was a statue of him erected in this park. What he didn't quite understand was the depiction of the Shinigami. Was that how he looked? James had never seen the guy, or any other representation of him as of yet, so he had been a little surprised. Though, he couldn't say he had any great expectations either. It was just...interesting. And a little sad, even. This was someone his parents had known, right? Or had met, at least. This was someone great, someone he wouldn't get the opportunity to know. He wouldn't get the chance to learn from this great figure in Shibusen's history, not in person anyway, and that depressed him a little bit.
He bit his lip, trying to stop silly tears that were completely uncalled for, and turned his music up a little louder to try and block out his own thoughts. That was a big part of why he was here, wasn't it? To be stronger. But he didn't feel stronger at all. He didn't feel any different from before. He just had a hell of a lot more free time that he had no clue how to deal with, and it was slowly starting to drive him insane. And for once in his life, he couldn't find comfort in his music.
Ripping the ear pieces away, he puffed out a sigh and let his head fall back over the top of the bench. "What am I even doing here...?" he grumbled. It was exactly what his younger self had predicted: he was surrounded by such amazing people, and he was still below average. His knowledge had expanded--coming to school had certainly taught him more than his parents ever could have--and in a way, he was discovering a little bit more about himself as a Meister. And that was really cool. But when it came to the important things, the parts that actually made him a Meister, he was severely lacking. And he didn't know what to do about it.
"Whatever." It was barely a grumble, his last ode to the statue in front of him before he pushed himself off of the bench. Normally, parks calmed him. But today he just gave himself more to think about. Maybe he'd go take a nap or something--take advantage of his newly found free time.
He shoved his hands into his pockets, taking several steps toward a path made in the grass before pausing. Blue eyes went wide as something very important dawned on him.
How did he get back to the dorms?
Another sigh, this one accompanied by a swear, left his chest as he turned right back around and marched to his bench. He plopped down and hung his head in shame.
Don't panic, he tried to assure himself. Just head back toward Shibusen. You can figure it out from there. Nodding a little, as though confirming his new plan, he stood up again with a new sense of confidence and started his journey yet again.
...only to pause once more, though this time it was because of the person he had spotted. And honestly, he couldn't tell if he wanted to keep going about his business, or run away in the opposite direction.
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Misaki Saito
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Post by Misaki Saito on Aug 15, 2014 13:55:20 GMT -5
Misaki lived for sales at the stores she bought her fabrics from. Sure, it wasn’t like she was short on cash, but saving money never hurt. Between her cosplays and her actual budding designs and the clothes she made specifically for herself, the bolts and yards and needle replacements and string and a million tools of the trade she needed got expensive fast. Coupons took up too much time in her opinion and she never paid attention to the expiration dates, plus she would have felt a little too much like her mother, so she tried her best to never miss any sales. The good part at least was that she had no trouble getting up early. After she’d gone out for her morning job, showered, and eaten breakfast, she’d been off and running to the stores. Every single one of them. If she had gone in not knowing what she wanted, Misaki knew she would leave with more than she could carry and more than she could hide from Kiku. Cat hair and runs through chiffon and tulle from kitty claws were not things Misaki wanted to deal with since she would then had to pile things up in what Kiku would think was the perfect hiding place and what Misaki would later tear her hair out over. Either way, she’d lucked out. Four bags, somewhere around thirty-five yards of fabric, new needles for her sewing machine, new threads, zippers and buttons, and two entire bolts she had balanced over her shoulder consisting of deep blue silk and green cotton respectively. She had a lot of work to do, but she’d get it done. Between classes there was plenty of time, and running off on missions didn’t worry her too much. She and Dion would make it back soon enough, possibilities of multiple Kishin Eggs running straight at them be damned. Misaki couldn’t wait to head out on their first Two star mission. Just thinking about it put a skip in her step as she veered off course to take a shortcut through the park on her way back to the apartment. Her wicked grin crept onto her face as she made her way along the path past others out to enjoy the Nevada sun. There were so many mad souls out there just waiting for her and Dion to show up and plow right through them. A little down time between battles was nice, but Misaki was antsy. Maybe she would pay the dojo a visit, let off some steam on the punching bags. She needed to get her leg back in working order too now that it was all healed. I wonder if I’ll leave our next mission covered in blood too. That was pretty sick, but getting it out of my clothes was a pain in the ass.Her thought process halted when another out of the corner did as well. Pausing in her steps, she turned to see a boy about her age seemingly attempting to impersonate a deer in headlights. Dude, I’m not even covered in blood or throwing firecrackers or anything. Maybe it was the bolts. They could certainly be used as weapons if she wanted, not that she would. That shit was expensive. Either way, Misaki was curious. Turning fully towards him, she tilted her head and continued to grin. “What’s up? Never seen a bolt of fabric before?” Granted, Misaki supposed it could just be her. She was small, sure, but she did have a bit of a mischievous air to her considering her default grin definitely suggested she was up to no good. But really, she wasn’t even doing anything, not that she didn’t have plans to. The main hallway of Shibusen needed more confetti blasted from the corners, but that was scheduled for tomorrow.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 15, 2014 14:52:32 GMT -5
The park's newest visitor for the moment was a girl, and a very tiny one at that. (Not that he could use that to determine anything about her; Jenna was tiny, too, but she was a fighter.) And while he had hoped that she wouldn't notice him, she took it a step further and even spoke to him. That was enough to put him into a state of shock; it wasn't normal to just talk to strangers, was it? Certainly not in either of the places he had lived. He supposed it wasn't exactly polite to stare at someone either, though he preferred to think of it as analyzing the situation and trying to find a way to avoid this very incident.
While her speaking to him was shocking, the words she spoke served to surprise him even further. It started off somewhat normal, a typical what's up that most teenagers use when addressing one another. It was what followed that puzzled him, and he took an unnecessarily long amount of time trying to process it. "A bolt of...what?" It was then that he actually paid a little more attention to her, and noticed exactly what she was carrying. On top of the two bolts, she also had several bags on her person.
He blinked, slowly, and returned his gaze to the girl herself whose grin made him wish that he had made a run for it the moment he noticed her. "What are you doing with so much of it?" he asked, and only realizing afterwards that this was not on this list of pleasantries one used when starting a conversation. He was a little curious, though. Was it the kind of fabric used to make clothes? Is that was she was doing? His mother tried making a quilt once, though that didn't turn out very well. He doubted that was what this person planned to do, though.
Were those things heavy? He didn't have the experience in lifting them to tell, but it still looked like a pain to carry everything. He fiddled with an empty bag in his pocket, taking a small step closer to the girl. "Do you...need any help?" he cautiously offered, not sure if she'd actually take him up on the offer or if he'd get an earful about her being able to take care of herself.
Though it didn't matter which she replied with. She looked like there was a possibility that she was a student at the school he was attending, so either way he could find his way back using her. Just, the former of the two options was a little less creepy.
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Misaki Saito
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Tiny Japanese Girl
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Post by Misaki Saito on Aug 18, 2014 13:27:53 GMT -5
The puzzled expression he gave her had Misaki rolling her eyes. Oh boy. Looked like some education was in order. “Fabric, bolts of fabric!” She shifted in order to maneuver two of the bags she carried to hang on her wrist so she could reach up and pat the secured cloth lightly. “Fabric gets rolled up in bolts for easy transport, but of course it can come way bigger than this but I can’t really afford that yet. Gotta stick to the small stuff for now.” Boom. Showing the mystery boy that one really did learn something new every day, even if Misaki somehow doubted he would ever really use this knowledge.
His curiosity pleased her. It wasn’t every day Misaki got to explain just what her future ambitions were, and certainly not to a stranger. Her usual conversations involved homework and fighting styles, unless Bang or Dion were involved and then everything just kind of turned sideways, but that was fun in its own way. Flicking a lock of displaced black hair over her shoulder, her grin shifted into more of a smirk, and a smug one at that. Why know you were good at something if you weren’t going to brag at least a little?
“Well you see, I’m going to be a fashion designer one day. Saving people and hunting things is all fine and dandy, but fashion’s been my focus since I was a kid.” Misaki paused if only to extend an arm out to her side, or at least the one she was capable of moving without letting the bolts hit the ground. Silk caught incredibly easily and the paved path would certainly scar it. “I would twirl to show off, but I’m a little off-balance at the moment. Either way, I made everything I’m wearing except my shoes and jewelry. Pretty amazing, eh? The industry’s gonna fall to its knees when I break in.”
Bringing her arm back in so she could keep an extra hand on the bolts over her shoulders. After doing so, Misaki shifted her gaze back to him; having reverted to her usual grin even if a bit of smugness still clung to her features. Hm? Did she need help? Well technically no, she was more than capable. But it would be nice to be able to hang onto the bolts a little more securely. Looking like she’d been thinking for a moment, she nodded once. “Well if you’re offering, I’m certainly not gonna say no so long as you don’t mind following me back to my apartment building.” Misaki rearranged how she held things, transferring two bags to one hand to hold out to the boy. “Here. If it’s too heavy let me know, I don’t wanna just make you into a pack mule.”
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Post by Deleted on Aug 19, 2014 23:24:57 GMT -5
James could actually think of two easier ways to transport fabric right off the top of his head, and he was positive that with some more thought put into it he could come up with more. For once he kept his mouth closed, though, because she clearly knew much more on this topic than he did. Will picked on him about being a housewife, but he didn't know anything about clothes or sewing. Though, he was certainly happy that she couldn't afford to buy anything bigger. The very idea of such a tiny girl carrying anything bigger was enough to throw him into one of his little worry fits.
Her expression shifted ever so slightly, and for a second he was terrified of what was going to leave her mouth. But then she started speaking, and he had no idea why he was frightened in the first place. In fact, without him even realizing it, he started to smile. "That's amazing," he breathed, appraising her clothes. He wasn't the kind of person who could create anything with his hands, so it was still a little surprising that normal people could actually do things like make clothes. His smile stretched wider as he focused back on the girl herself, rather than her articles of clothing. "You'll blow them all away." He really meant it, though he didn't know if she'd believe him or not. It didn't take a genius to see that he didn't know anything about fashion. But he was still very impressed.
The smile didn't last long, though. He fell back into an almost nervous expression as she accepted his offer of help. What was the proper way to respond to following a girl back to her apartment? Yes he wanted to help her. But at the same time, he couldn't really say that he was okay with going to her apartment. Would that make him sound like a pervert? He swore he wasn't--oh God, he had too many little sisters to ever think about anything like that. But it wasn't like she knew that.
So he was grateful when she held a couple of bags out to him, and he was almost too eager to take them. "N-no...it's fine." He'd sooner shoot himself in the foot than tell her if they were too heavy. Thankfully, this at least he could handle. Grocery shopping for a big family prepared him enough for this, even though he wasn't nearly as strong as a boy his age should be.
"Do you always buy this much?" he found himself blurting out without much thought, and he even tacked on a softer "The fashion industry's pretty rough, huh?" He wondered if she usually had someone to help her carry all of it, though she struck him as the type to get someone to go with her if she actually needed to help. Despite knowing that, he wondered if she needed him to carry any more bags. The bolts looked difficult to handle on their own, and she still had two bags left.
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Misaki Saito
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Spear Technician
Tiny Japanese Girl
Posts: 124
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Post by Misaki Saito on Aug 21, 2014 14:13:20 GMT -5
The boy’s praise only made Misaki grin more. It was always nice to meet someone who recognized her greatness. Judging by the smile on his face, she could also tell he was being genuine and not just telling her what she wanted to hear, not that she wouldn’t have taken that as well. She just wouldn’t have respected him for it. And possibly tripped him at some point, but that thankfully wouldn’t be needed. He seemed like a nice kid, if a little subdued. Misaki was waiting to see if her attitude would frighten him again.
Yup, there it was. Granted to a point he seemed more nervous about helping her than her actual state of being present. Misaki waited, tilting her head and raising an eyebrow. You can say no, I’m not going to get mad. She didn’t want to say it outright in case it was just one of those shy guy things where he didn’t know how to talk to girls. Misaki hadn’t encountered too many of those at Shibusen, but she still counted it as a possibility. It probably didn’t help that she could be a little bit overwhelming just by default.
Whatever it was that had made him nervous seemed to wane at least a little with her holding out the bags to him. The assurance that he really didn’t mind helping her wasn’t really needed since he proved that just by taking them from her. Misaki grinned again, moving her free hand to the bolts so she could better hold onto the now. She definitely felt better knowing they were more secure and unlikely to drop to the ground which meant the likelihood of her dropping to her knees and mourning the loss of the fabric that had touched the pavement was not almost nonexistent. That was good. It was always embarrassing when she had to do that.
“Thanks, man. It’s really nice of you to help me out.” Misaki turned and nodded her head for him to follow her in the right direction. Hearing his question as she started to walk, she didn’t have to think too long, granted the other comment he made threw her off some. What, did he think he was being rude? Whatever the reason, Misaki was happy to answer regardless. “It depends on what I’m doing,” she answered truthfully, “I only bought this much today because all of the stores I usually hit up were having sales, so I went and bought stuff that I know I’ll need in bulk while it isn’t so expensive.” She glanced at him again as they kept walking before continuing on to say, “But sometimes I have to buy a lot anyway if I have a lot of projects I want to do. So I guess sometimes I do buy this much, but sometimes I don’t. It varies.”
“As for the fashion industry itself…” That she had to think about. It felt like a more difficult thing to answer for whatever reason, even though she could easily give the same answer as she had to the fabric quantity it varied. “If you know someone it’s a lot easier, but sometimes just working for a designer can be enough if you impress them. But then there’s also the possibility you’ll never make it out of the intern stage. Other people start out on their own and just keep knocking and knocking until they break down the door or someone opens it for them, granted not all of them succeed.” A wicked grin pulled at her lips again, actually looking at the other boy. “But knocking isn’t really all that necessary when you plan to kick it off its hinges from day one. You’ve gotta be aggressive if you want to be a household name one day after all!”
Which reminded her. “Oh yeah. Since you’re helping me out, I guess I should at least tell you my name, eh?” She took her free hand and tucked it under black strands that had fallen forward in front of her shoulder to lip them back for dramatic effect. They’d reached the end of the park pathway, the city forming slowly around them. She paused as they reached it so she could properly look at him, bowing her head a little out of habit since she couldn’t quite bow properly, not that she would have since she was too good for it. “Name’s Misaki Saito. Nice to meetcha.”
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Post by Deleted on Aug 23, 2014 15:15:49 GMT -5
This girl actually wasn't very scary at all, and James actually felt a little bad for being so frightened her. She just had a much stronger personality than he did, or that was the impression he was under anyway, and that still made her seem intimidating. Well, rather, she was intimidating, and he was pretty positive that if he pissed her off, he wouldn't survive the encounter. But at least he didn't feel like he was walking on a minefield anymore. Just eggshells, but that's how he felt around ninety percent of the population.
They began to walk, and James was just honestly surprised that she was so willing to talk to him beyond what was typically considered polite. And he knew it wasn't for him personally or anything, and that this was something she was passionate about so of course she'd have a lot to say about it. But it still made him a little happy to hear her talk. It even made him relax a little; he expected this to be a lot more awkward. Not to mention the topic of conversation was actually pretty cool, though he'd never admit it to anyone. Maybe because she loved it so much--if Jenna was talking about this sort of thing, he'd probably be really bored.
Plus, if anything, he could understand the call of a sale. While he never went on shopping sprees, he always bought a little too much if there was a sale at the grocery store. Not that he'd tell her that, but still.
"Does that mean you're not working on anything right now?" Since she only bought what she had because it was on sale. But creative minds were amazing, and she could very well be coming up with a new design right this very moment. (Though he didn't think that was the case.)
Though he had really just been making an off-hand comment, she still talked to him about the fashion industry and what was needed to be successful, and though she didn't outright give him a yes or no, he decided by what she said that yes, the fashion industry was a tough business to be in.
His smile wasn't as strong as her brilliant grin, but he believed it was enough to convey his faith in her. "Right," there was even a tiny laugh laced within it, and he decided that she would be fine in such a difficult sounding career.
It was really interesting, how she already knew what she wanted to do. He was still just trying to figure out how to survive the year, and he hadn't really been able to think of what he was going to do after the, in her words, hunting and saving. (Though, he wasn't even sure he'd sorted that part of his life out. He didn't really think he was cut out for it, to be honest.) How did people figure these kinds of things out so easily? He was a little jealous.
Then she mentioned names, and all the color drained from his face. He had completely forgotten to introduce himself; he had probably been far too nervous to do so to start off with, and then after that things just flowed so well he didn't even think of giving her his name. "R-right! Nice to meet you too. I'm James." All the while he was mentally apologizing for not doing this sooner. "I haven't really been in town long..." he drifted off, not really too sure where he wanted to go with that. So he just left it there. In his embarrassment, he looked away from her and trained his eyes forward. "Wh-which way now?"
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Misaki Saito
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Post by Misaki Saito on Aug 25, 2014 14:36:26 GMT -5
Misaki hadn’t meant to laugh at his question concerning projects, but she wound up doing so anyway. “I don’t think I’m ever not working to be honest.” She paused if only to think. What did she have left that weren’t cosplays? Of course were flawless too since she was the one who made them, but not everyone thought that was normal. Considering where she came from thought it was a thing for little kids and weirdoes, her family included in that opinion, Misaki was always unsure of whether she should include those projects or not. She decided not to for now and just listed the recent ones.
“Right now I’m throwing together a new dress, but I’ve got the fabric for that at home already. My sister begged me to make her a few new outfits so she could avoid a shopping trip, but of course she had to bribe me since I don’t do commissions for free regardless of relationship.” She looked at him and grinned. “Granted I’m also pretty lenient, so I just told her to send me more star candies and I’d call it even. She’s awful, but she’s still my little sister. Gotta set a good example for when she starts school out her herself, not that she’ll ever be as good as me of course.” Whether the sibling rivalry was obvious or not was up in the air, but Misaki really didn’t care.
Getting to the name bit, apparently that somehow made him nervous again. The kid really was a bit of a delicate flower, it seemed. He still managed to introduce himself, but the stutter he’d done so with almost made Misaki feel bad. Maybe if she made sure to be nice that would help. She couldn’t really recall anybody being this nervous to meet her, so it was a new experience to be certain. Knowing now to call him James, Misaki nodded to where they were headed: to the left. “Right over this way.”
As she started walking again, Misaki glanced at him again. “You said you were new, yeah? Any chance that has to do with a certain school?” Her words were accompanied by a tilt of her head and a raised eyebrow, clearly inquisitive but with the look thrown off towards somewhere between scheming and plotting due to that grin of hers. It was an assumption that came up often in meeting new people her age. Of course she was sometimes wrong, of course there were normal teenagers living in Death City too, but she always felt like she should ask. Plus, if he was new that would explain why she hadn’t seen him yet, and why he hadn’t at least heard of her. In the meantime, she paused at a stop light after walking a fair ways. Back in Seattle jaywalking was easy, but she'd rather not risk it given the precious cargo she was currently carrying. That, and James didn't seem the type to try and dash across the street if the coast was clear.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 26, 2014 11:19:08 GMT -5
She had laughed, and even though he had meant it as a serious question he didn't mind too much. He should have known the answer to that one, after all. Of course she always had projects. But that wasn't a bad thing, at least he didn't think so. Had he been in her position, he would have wanted to always be working on something as well. He should pick up some sort of hobby, though he doubted Shibusen had any kind of soccer team and that was really the only thing he was good at.
...that was actually a very depressing realization, and it was enough to keep him busy while she had paused either for effect or simply to think over her next words. Thankfully, she did speak up again to tell him about what she was currently working on and succeeded in drawing him away from the rather negative train of thought. He even found himself smiling again, wanting to laugh but keeping himself from doing so. That sounded just like the relationship between sisters, he thought. The twins were a lot like that, bribing each other with candy. (Mostly his gummy bears, damn them.)
"Do you make a lot of dresses?" he asked, because dresses seemed like the easiest thing to create. (Though, he had seen a few very complicated looking ones.) He was also really curious about the star candy, but that just felt inappropriate to bring up if only because they were currently talking about her work. But whatever they were, they must have been pretty good.
He was thankful to start walking again, and he began to move to the left just as she had directed. They wouldn't be walking long, due to the stoplight, and that would have been okay if the conversation hadn't turned onto him. He'd almost rather keep talking about her, the be honest. But he nodded, giving a sheepish grin. "You got me," he consented, looking away from her to stare at the stoplight as if that would make it change faster. "Are you a student, too?" She sort of looked like one, but it was better not to assume those sort of things. He wasn't actually sure if he wanted her to be one or not.
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Misaki Saito
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Tiny Japanese Girl
Posts: 124
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Post by Misaki Saito on Aug 28, 2014 14:44:58 GMT -5
Misaki shrugged at the specifics. “I guess I do. I mean skirts are my thing so dresses do come up a lot now that you mention it.” It was simple enough, at least to her. To Misaki it made more sense to wear skirts than pants unless the weather demanded it. She had more capability to move freely that way. Plus she always wre something underneath them so even if she was jumping around kicking ass she didn’t worry about accidentally flashing her enemies. Although now that she thought about it, it was definitely a pain in the ass having to fix them up sometimes. That damn nightmare had ripped the one she’d been wearing on her last mission something awful, but she was repairing it slowly.
While the red light lingered and blocked their progress for the time being, it seemed he was right. Her grin was the exact opposite of James’, pleased with herself for guessing correctly. But again, it was a more than likely possibility in Death City, so she couldn’t give herself too much credit… Aw hell, yes she could. She was amazing, she deserved it. More questions popped into her head, but James asked one of his own before she got a chance to ask any of them. Psh, was she a student? To Misaki it seemed like a silly question with an obvious answer but she took mercy on the kid.
“Damn right, I’m a student!” Misaki gave him a grin like she knew exactly when the world was going to end as she took the hand she was using to better hold the bolts and placed it on her hip, adopting a rather dramatic pose with her chin up. “One hell of a student, too! My Weapon and I just made Two star!” Was she maybe over doing it? No, never. The ego boost from moving up a class would never end. The more they progressed, the more confident Misaki grew, but that was just a given. Of course she was cocky and smug, she was allowed to be with her skill and ability. She wouldn’t boast about things she wasn’t capable of, that would just be silly.
The light switched to green, and Misaki placed her free hand back on the bolts, skipping into the street before settling back into a walk. Remembering questions she had for James, she turned and walked backwards for a spell as they reached the other side of the street and continued on straight ahead. “Oh, so what class are you in? Are you a Weapon or a Meister like me?” Rapid fire maybe, but it was just her personality. Misaki knew she could be intense, but she also didn’t recognize it half the time. There was some good in it though as she went back to walking forwards rather than backwards and risking any damage to her precious cargo.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 31, 2014 1:00:44 GMT -5
He wondered which was easier: skirts or dresses? Logic said skirts, but one of the sisters had a habit of buying really elaborate skirts. The two articles were extremely similar, or at least he thought so, so maybe they were equally as difficult. (Or not difficult?) Or maybe it just depended on the design. Yeah, that made more sense than anything else he could come up with, and he didn't dare voice his questions for fear of sounding dumb.
Though, he still ended up sounding that way anyway. Of course she was a student, he thought, though he just kept a self-deprecating smile on his face. Her words were enough to strike awe in him, though. Even he knew that a Two Star was impressive, even if he wasn't entirely sure how he would ever get there. "Congratulations," he offered her, though what he really wanted to ask about was her partner. How they met, what sort of weapon it was, did they get along? This was something he assumed would happen to him in the future, if he didn't die or flunk out first, so naturally it was a source of anxiety for him. But at the same time, he wanted her to have her moment, because moving up to Two Star was definitely a feat and she deserved it.
The light changed, and so did her attention. Questions were fired off at him as they began to cross the street, and Misaki even started to traverse it going backwards. He kept his eyes trained on her, body tensing in preparation to catch her or her pretty bolts of fabric should anything happen. "One Star," he answered, a little distracted, though he was able to relax as she turned around once more. "And I'm a Meister, too." I guess, he added on mentally. It was all still a very odd concept for him. She was probably questioning it, too. He wasn't very impressive, after all. Jumpy and nervous and altogether kind of useless looking.
"How long did it take? To reach Two Star," he asked, mostly for another shift in attention. He was curious, though he didn't expect to make it that far anytime soon. Besides, maybe she'd share some adventures with him. "What's your partner like?" They definitely worked well together to get this far.
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Misaki Saito
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Spear Technician
Tiny Japanese Girl
Posts: 124
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Post by Misaki Saito on Sept 5, 2014 15:09:38 GMT -5
Misaki accepted his congratulations with a more gleeful grin that made her look a little less mischievous. “Thanks!” It felt amazing to move up in class. She didn’t even mind all the work that would come with it, all the training she and Dion had set up to better their resonance and their capabilities in general, the different and more advanced subject matter. Misaki especially couldn’t wait to take on the missions. New challenges and new places, new adversaries, maybe even multiple adversaries. It was all exciting and new and Misaki was ready to dive right in. She hoped James would get the chance to feel as fired up as she was one day.
One star made sense to her for what class James could be in. To be fair with how nervous he was Misaki would have probably guessed NOT class, but that wasn’t entirely fair. It wasn’t like there were no One star students who were a little apprehensive or anything, especially the ones who had never seen combat before. Judging by the way James was acting so far, Misaki assumed that was probably the case. Either way, the news James was also a fellow Meister kept Misaki in her decidedly inquisitive mood.
“Oh, a new Meister, eh?” she mused before glancing over to him, “How’s it goin’ for you so far?” Misaki figured it was fair enough to ask. Plus, James was new. If there was anything she could say or do to maybe help him out, she would happily assist whether it was navigation or training. Helping out new students wasn’t something Misaki always did but that was because she hadn’t run into very many to be perfectly honest. But she’d run into this one and he seemed like a nice kid, so why not? It seemed like the right thing to do as she turned left at the next corner.
And like that, James had her distracted. Misaki grew into looking thoughtful. How long had it taken them t get to one star? There was their first mission and the recovery time. Resonance training. Second mission and a bit longer for recovery time, at least for her. The delay from the bird thing showing up at the school that took down Dion. Their fight after that. Their third mission with her still not quite healed entirely. After a moment or two, she let her head lull to the sight. “I would say around three months,” she mused, squinting up at the sky, “Yeah, three months sounds about right. Three missions, some recovery time in between for that damn shark doppelganger thing biting the hell outta my leg, other outlying factors in between, training. It didn’t take too long, but it took long enough.” Misaki glanced over at James then, grinning once more. “Don’t try to use me as a baseline, though. It depends entirely on skill level, and if anyone gets on your case for goin’ at your own pace once you find a partner, tell ‘em to shove it.”
Misaki may have gone on to listing other factors or even examples of other students she knew. But the questions relating to her partner threw all that out the window. Her face lit up in an entirely different way than it had previously, her eyes shining. “He’s amazing, of course!” she readily exclaimed. “His name’s Dion. He’s kinda like me in a lot of ways, always up for a bit of troublemaking, but he’s more subdued than I am. He’s really cocky too, not that it isn’t justified,” she glanced over at James, a legitimate and rather crooked smile on her face with the right side of her mouth tugging up a little more than that left. “We’re both awesome, so we’re entitled to act smug.” Misaki made to stop at another crosswalk but the light turned green and so she kept walking, to the right this time. “I’m pretty sure he subsists solely on pizza and mountain dew, but maybe that’s because he’s from New York, I dunno. He kinda dresses and looks like an emo kid, but he really isn’t, like he could not be more opposite but he still looks really cu-cool! He still looks really cool.” Terrible save. Hopefully James wouldn’t notice.
Quick, change the subject! Misaki tried to will away the light dusting of pink in her cheeks and reverted to an expression of curiosity. “Speaking of partners, have you found one yet?” Not only reasonable but also hopefully distracting. Finding a partner could be frustrating, and she’d run into Dion completely by chance. If her vespa hadn’t broken down and if he hadn’t come along and found her, she may not have met him. Or maybe she would have in class. Either way, Misaki was glad her vespa broke down that day. As far as she was concerned, it was one of the best days of her entire life.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 10, 2014 13:58:56 GMT -5
There was a very noncommittal shrug on his end. He didn't really know how to answer that. He hadn't really done anything Meister-y, just attended a few classes. And honestly, he was still struggling with that a little. He understood concepts, but when it came to actually trying to imagine himself as a Meister, things weren't really working out very well. "It's going," was all he could really say on the matter. Maybe the next week would bring about more improvement.
Misaki seemed to be deep in thought, and he waited patiently for her to come up with an answer. He felt a little guilty, though. He didn't realize it would be such a difficult thing to answer; he definitely understood, though. Sometimes time just slipped by, and you had to go back and figure out how much of it had actually gone by. She didn't take too long to find her answer, though. Three months, she had said. That was actually a lot less time than he initially expected. Three missions, that made sense. As did recovery time. But she lost him at the bit about the...shark? He mouthed the word to himself, looking a little puzzled. He almost had himself convinced it was better just not to ask, and then she had moved on to look at him again. Her words made him laugh, and this time it actually sounded happy. "Thanks, I'll remember that." He wasn't the type to tell any sort of bully to "shove it", as she had graciously put. But he felt a little more at ease with her words nonetheless. If someone as great as Misaki said it was okay just to do things at his own pace, then he wouldn't feel so ashamed about it anymore. This conversation certainly hadn't gone the way he expected it to, but he was really glad that it was happening.
And then her entire face lit up, and it was almost like her joy was contagious because he started to smile a little too. He had to keep himself from chuckling at the way she described her partner, though. He couldn't help it when she declared that both she and her partner were awesome, however; but he nodded in agreement, because he believed every word she said.
Talk of Dion went on a little longer, with her divulging into information he hadn't expected to hear. She even slipped up a little, but James didn't verbally point it out. He gave her a knowing grin, though. "Sounds cool," he commented lightly. They sounded like an interesting pair, though they'd probably eat him alive if he were ever with the two at the same time.
Then the partner talk shifted to him, a logical change that James had expected. "Nope." He hadn't given much thought to a partner as of yet. He was a little nervous about the whole idea, really. He kind of felt bad for whoever was stuck with him as a partner. "Haven't really been around long enough to meet them yet." Or social enough. It'll probably happen by some freak accident, if it happens at all. "Has there been anyone who just...didn't end up with one?" he wondered aloud, and it only took like ten seconds for him to realize he didn't want to know the answer to that. "N-never mind! That's silly..." He turned a little red, deciding that he'd rather keep some shred of hope.
What happened to Meisters who didn't find Weapon partners? Sure, there were so many students at Shibusen that surely everyone could find a match. But it wasn't like you could just walk up to someone and declare them your partner, could you? That seemed...anti-climatic.
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Misaki Saito
Meister
Spear Technician
Tiny Japanese Girl
Posts: 124
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Post by Misaki Saito on Sept 23, 2014 14:20:07 GMT -5
James’ answer to her initial question was about what Misaki had expected. She remembered being a new One star, but then she also remembered being far more eager than James appeared to be. Misaki had dived right in to the classes and been lucky enough to have found a partner with relative ease. She’d been excited enough just to be at Shibusen, not that the determination to prove herself didn’t follow closely behind. She was thankful for having found Dion so quit. If she’d had to sit idle for a while longer and wait she may have gone stir crazy after a bit, plus she could imagine it may have been a bit more difficult finding someone else capable of handling her Pulse Wavelength well.
Her advice did not fall on deaf ears. That meant she didn’t have to knock him once in the shoulder and tell him to pay attention. Misaki realized she couldn’t have actually done that anyway given that her hands were full. Fortunate for both of them, then. Either way, seeing James laugh gave her a sense of accomplishment. He’d looked so uneasy for most of their initial meeting she’d been a little worried, but now he seemed to be loosening up a bit. Probably for the best. Being wishy-washy wasn’t a safe thing to do at Shibusen, especially out in the field. Misaki wondered in the back of her mind just how he’d handle missions and training once he was partnered.
Misaki wondered if worrying about the lowerclassmen was normal or if she was just maturing a little more than she’d expected.
But James’ reaction to her end tangent on Dion distracted her. He didn’t say anything about it, but she could tell he hadn’t bought it. The knowing look on his face made her shoulders a little stiffer. Misaki pouted and let her eyes drift away to the side, refusing to look at him. She resembled a five year old who’d been told she wasn’t allowed to watch television until she cleaned her room. At least she’d been truthful. Dion really was cool, but then Dion was a lot of things, especially to her. Misaki could feel her face getting hot so she was sure to distract herself with what James said next.
James hadn’t found a partner yet after all which wasn’t unbelievable, especially as he went on to clarify that he was too new to have had a proper look around. Misaki nodded, a short hum of acknowledgment preceding her actual words. “Damn, you must be super new then.” New to Misaki meant anywhere between week to a month. James apparently was something in that first bit, or maybe even newer. Hell, he could’ve just landed a few days ago and she’d never know.
But he definitely fit the part of worried new student well. The question threw her for a moment but then she grinned not unkindly as she started to walk a little slower, the apartment building she and Dion called home coming up soon. “It’s not silly. I was a little nervous about the whole partner thing too when I first got here,” she admitted before keeping on, “But if you mean is there anyone who never found a partner for their entire stay, I’m sure there probably has been even though that seems highly unlikely.” It made sense. Some people had great difficulty with partnering. The first people to come to mind were Levi and Bang Bang. Misaki couldn’t imagine either having an easy time finding someone, granted for different reasons. She skipped from being logical to being encouraging for James’ sake, though. “But it can also just take a little while to partner and find someone who suits you,” she told him, trying not to sound blunt, “A friend of mine has a personality that can be difficult to handle sometimes, so she needs someone else who can properly balance that without her driving them up a wall.” She looked at James again, a more smug look on her face when she thought of the prince, “I know another boy who’s even more full of himself than I am, and he has such a powerful and overwhelming wavelength from his soul that I can’t imagine finding a partner would ever be easy for him.”
Misaki slowly to a stop just short of the entry to her apartment building. “My friend still managed to find a Meister, even if she had to wait a while,” she grinned a bit more, carefully adjusting her grip on the bolts so she could rest one hand on her hip. “I got lucky when I found Dion. Our personalities mesh well, and he can handle the extra push from my wavelength.” She stopped if only to tilt her head up, looking skyward almost but not quite to the top floor where she and Dion lived. “If I hadn’t run out of gas on the way home I might not have met him,” she said in a quieter tone before turning her attention back on James again, “Sometimes partners meet completely by chance when they least expect it, not during classes or from teacher recommendations.” The wicked grin slid back onto her face, a thumbs up accompanying it. “You’re new. Don’t be getting too down about being unpartnered just yet, and give it a little time before you start getting all mopey, okay?”
And with her little speech done, onto the main goal. They were technically at her stop. Misaki nodded in the direction of the doors. “This is me, or kind of at least. Technically I’m on the top floor.” Misaki shifted her weight onto one hip and switched back to holding onto her loot with both hands. “I can technically take it from here, but do you wanna come up? I feel like I at least owe you some tea for your help.”
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Oct 10, 2014 16:53:38 GMT -5
Well, he was super new. First week of school super new. That felt a little embarrassing to admit, though, so he just nodded in affirmation. He also didn't want to admit that he mostly kept to himself during that adjustment week, which meant that his not meeting of potential partners was one-hundred percent his fault. But this social interaction wasn't going too horribly, so he felt a little bit better about meeting more people. Slowly, in nice and peaceful environments.
It was actually kind of difficult to imagine Misaki in the role of the nervous new student. She just didn't strike him as that type, no matter how young she might have been. He kind of wondered if she was just saying that to make him feel better, and that it wasn't actually true or anything. Not that he knew her personally enough to make that assumption. Her words did make him feel a bit better nonetheless, though there was a bit of a depressing lilt downwards. It was highly unlikely, she had said. But not impossible. And that was the scary part. He could mourn for his future partner, feel sorry for the poor person who was stuck with him for the rest of their Shibusen career, but in the end he didn't want to end up alone either.
James felt his mouth twist into an odd expression as she began to list off people she personally knew who had struggled in this topic, trying not to react to the idea of someone being more full of themselves than her--not that he saw it as a negative thing. He actually really envied her confidence. It was still an amusing notion, one he was sure she only threw in to make him feel better. And it did, sort of.
He twisted his head to look away, a light dusting of pink freckling across his nose. "I'm not mopey," he grumbled stubbornly, though even he knew that he had taken a mopey tone beforehand. His expression softened a little as he mumbled out a sheepish sounding "Thank you..." for her words of encouragement, because they really did mean a lot to him. But he wasn't quite brave enough to look back at her to speak them, and he wasn't even sure if she heard him at all.
Having been so lost in the conversation, James hadn't noticed at all that they had reached the apartment complex. He looked up at it, as though surprised to see it. He found himself torn between being happy they made it and a little upset that this meant they couldn't talk anymore.
But then she made another suggestion, and he was absolutely positive the internal struggle he was going through was playing plainly on his face. Yes he wanted to go up for tea--he didn't even drink tea, but he wanted to spend more time with this incredibly interesting and surprisingly kind girl. But he couldn't quite figure out if that was creepy, or even appropriate. He also didn't feel like she owed him anything, because he chose to help her on his own. And was that just a pleasantry? Maybe she just felt obligated to invite him up but she didn't really mean it and just wanted him to leave? Puzzled blue eyes searched her face carefully, trying to detect signs of annoyance from her. But in the midst of his nervous breakdown, he couldn't really get a good reading of how she might be feeling.
Surely she wouldn't have made the invitation if she didn't actually want him there, right? After all, she could have just ended things with a "thanks, bye" and it would have ended like that. But she didn't so that definitely meant that he wasn't bothering her, right?
This was all very confusing.
He ducked his head a little in an attempt to try and hide his conflict, but he kept a tighter grip on the bags he was carrying. "You don't owe me anything...b-but if it's not a bother I'd like to visit a little longer?" It came out sounding more like a question, and he cringed a little. Never mind, forget all of that. He just wanted to drop her bags and run for it.
He didn't, though, and that was an improvement. He finally found it within himself to look back at the girl, trying to smile and look more confident than he was. "I mean...tea sounds great," he tried to amend his previous flub-up, though it probably did nothing for his cause.
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