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 Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2009 3:39 am
There was no sound in the room besides the soft whirring of the computer set to one side of the big desk as Jerard leaned back in his chair, studying the pair across from him through slightly hooded eyes. Fascinating. Mentally, he ran through their profiles in his head once more, matching up personality traits to the expressions and gestures of the two in front of him. It would be truly interesting to watch how these two, with quite obviously different personalities from equally obviously different backgrounds, managed to work together.
With a slight creak of leather, Jerard sat forward, resting his head lightly upon steepled fingers as he smiled. "I hear you two met outside a club, what a place! Surprises happen all over Death City, but for a partnering to occur in such a way..."
He let his voice drift off before continuing in a more brisk manner. "Well." Looking down at the open folder on his desk, he smiled slightly. "I have assigned Ashie to take the two of you on a tour of the school and the facilities you will be using now that you have been paired and are able to begin missions. She will be waiting for you two outside my office, if you would be so kind as to step outside?"
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Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2009 4:28 am
At the administrator's words, Ivan rolled his neck, an irritated movement that broke the muzzle of self-restraint he used to deal with Phonne and his type - wolves in sheepskin - sitting through the smiling introduction through sheer force of will. Guided tour his a**. Phonne knew better than anyone how long Ivan'd been stuck in this hellhole. He was just b*****d enough to make him jump through hoops - 'specially now that he had Ivan's TECH self firmly under his thumb. Growling beneath his breath, the Russian stood, beckoning his new WEAPON with an impatient flick of the hand.
Shen watched as Ivan vacated the room, catching the gesture but remaining seated for a moment longer with his hands folded in his lap. At being left alone so suddenly his mind was seizing but his expression didn't change an iota. Neither perched nor settled too deeply in the chair, he returned his focus to Jerard with an intensity he knew some people found unnerving, but which Shen only considered common courtesy.
"Thank you for your arrangements," he said softly, returning the smile with as deep a bow as he could manage in his chair. He hoped Jerard would forgive the indiscretion. "If there's nothing further, I'll be taking my leave." Standing, he bowed again before slipping into the corridor.
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Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2009 4:58 am
Ashie hummed quietly to herself as she walked down the hallway towards Jerard's office, happily slurping the latest DeathBUCKS concoction - a regular sized Double Dee. The drink was a vivid mixture of various bright colors, and matched the Death Scythe's current mood perfectly as she'd just come back from the latest session of belly dancing. It was going well, and she was super excited about being able to show Axie soon. Her twin sister was just going to be sooooooooo proud of her!
She looked up in time to see first a boy with blonde hair and average height and ... flip flops! step out of the door, followed moments later by a slightly more slender figure with a curtain of white hair. Coooooool. Ashie grinned, instantly willing to believe that this tour would go supremely well. This pair were so interesting!
Nearing the office, Ashie shifted the drink from her double-handed hold to simply her left hand, absently wiping the right, slightly damp with condensation from the cold drink, on the hem of her short jean skirt before offering it in greeting. "Hey guys! I'm Ashie." She giggled, a manifestation of her excitement. "Since you two are the only ones standing in front of J's office, I guess you're Shen and Ivan, right?" Ashie looked from one to another, wondering how they'd managed to pair up. It was always so cool, meeting these new pairs. Even though her tours usually ended before they should...
"Let's see... I'd guess you were Ivan?" Cocking her head towards the blonde-haired boy, Ashie grinned widely before turning to the other. "And you're Shen, right? I love your hair!"
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Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2009 6:03 am
Ivan's mouth quirked as he caught sight of the girl coming down the hall, sucking at a crazyass rainbow of a drink. Looked pretty good actually. As she drew close, he reached out an idle arm, ready to pluck it out of her hand - but stopped, fingers hovering as she introduced herself. Ashie. Damn. She'd be the sister of the ******** crazy he'd heard about all over campus. He slid the hand back down his slacks and into his pocket, all casual-like, stretching his lips into a wide grin.
"Yeah," he said, sweeping her over more carefully now that she was somebody, taking in the giggles, tiny top and bizarre earrings. s**t, she'd fit right in back home - all gutterbabies were a bit ******** nuts. "You taking me around or what?" he asked, flip-flops already squeaking over the tiles - if there was anything he knew about this weird place designed by an even weirder costumed guy, it was that there was no such thing as the wrong direction - you walked in circles 'til you got where you wanted.
Startled, Shen was faced with Ivan's back yet again. He didn't know the other man very well - his TECHNICIAN hadn't been in any classes either before or after they matched wavelengths - but he had a sinking feeling that this was a permanent state of affairs. Biting the inside of his cheek, he took Ashie's hand in his and shook it once before retreating into his sleeve. He was a little surprised that she'd touch him. Even polite Westerners tended to bow awkwardly or nod. At her compliment, he smiled helplessly and deflected. "Thank you and it's nice to meet you, Ashie. The blue in yours is very beautiful."
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Posted: Mon Sep 07, 2009 2:07 am
Oblivious to the near-theft of her drink, Ashie grinned cheerfully at Ivan as she nodded. "Yep, definitely! Anywhere you want to gooooo!" The last bit was said in a slightly sing-song manner as she waved the arm holding the drink expansively. Leaning forward slightly, she winked. "Where do you want to start? Everyone seems to want to see the missions area... I can take you guys there first, maybe!" Ashie giggled, thinking about dropping in on Axie while they were there.
For all her general obliviousness, however, she noticed Shen's reticence and was somewhat confused by it - not being used to such treatment from anyone. A slight frown appeared between her brows as she eyed the wraith-like boy before she wrapped her right hand back around the cold drink and taking a throughtful sip. One shoulder rose and dipped elegantly as she pulled a face. "You seem to be acting a bit strange, do I look funny or something?"
The return compliment distracted her utterly, and Ashie giggled, dropping her voice to a whisper to confide, "The color matches my eyes!"
With that, Ashie turned and headed down the hallway, quickly overtaking Ivan to take the lead.
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Posted: Mon Sep 07, 2009 2:42 am
Ivan's grin cracked wider as Ashie powered on without giving him room to answer - he liked a girl with a bulldozer personality. If she was the other twin, she had to be pretty high up in the food chain - but she didn't seem stiff: upbeat and colourful, didn't give off an alpha female vibe either. First girl he'd met around here that he didn't want to chew over and spit back out.
"Why not?" he smirked; didn't mind relinquishing the reins for a little while if she kept being so amusing.
Shen straightened automatically as Ashie's brows drew together and she pinned him with her eyes. Had he offended her? He resisted the urge to look away although he hated being scrutinised. It was like being autopsied without the benefit of dying first. Thankfully, her attention was easily diverted and she resumed her smile once more. The bright expression suited her much better. She really didn't seem like the frowning sort.
"Please don't mind me," Shen offered, and followed lightly in her footsteps as she advanced down the corridor, taking up the rear in their odd little procession.
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Posted: Mon Sep 07, 2009 3:50 am
"Don't mind you, why?" Ashie looked quizzically over at Shen for a moment, confused. "If you think there's something funny on my face you should say so!"
"Alright!" One hand pumped cheerfully in the air as she led the way. "The missions area it is! I guess we'll pass by some of the other important Jerard-says-I-must-show-you places as we head there, so at least I won't get into trouble!" She giggled, as unfazed by the prospect as she usually was - usually such things simply blew right over Ashie's head. It never got boring or repetitive to her to show the newly paired people around, since they were all so different, but it was definitely getting easier!
Turning once, Ashie checked behind her to make sure her little group was still altogether before continuing down the corridor, pointing to her left. "This... is where the classrooms are." The classrooms were aligned along the wall, labeled neatly and with a pane of glass on each door so those outside could take a peek in. Taking a long slurp out of her drink, she grimaced as she managed to give herself a minor case of brain freeze. "Ouch!" Shaking her head to clear it, she tried to continue. "And..." Having completely managed to lose her train of thought, Ashie giggled. "Where was I?"
Looking around, she stopped in her tracks, one hand lifting thoughtfully to her head, finger tapping lightly at her temple as she tried to sift through her recollection of the past few moments. "Oh yeah! These are the classrooms! All along this corridor here..." She smiled triumphantly, proud that she'd managed to remember. "And now, if we turn up ahead," Ashie resumed walking, her pace almost brisk as her target was now in sight, "we'll be heading towards the missions area." She wasn't sure why everyone wanted to see this place, but since they all did, she was happy to oblige!
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Posted: Mon Sep 07, 2009 5:00 am
Shen didn't struggle to keep up with the whirlwind pace, but Ashie's enthusiasm and sincerity was somewhat daunting, rapidly rebuilding his image of a Death Scythe. He had no doubt that Ashie was qualified but he supposed that at the back of his mind, he'd always envisioned someone more esteemed-looking, perhaps with the heavy, forbidding aura of his father and rapidly gaining older brothers. "There's nothing the matter with your face," he rushed to reassure her, and threw several glances in Ivan's direction in a silent bid for support. His TECHNICIAN had yet to address or even acknowledge him - but it was stupid to expect, he reminded himself. He should be grateful that he even had a meister.
After Ashie indicated the classrooms (which Ivan met with an offhand scowl), and gave an exclamation of pain (which Ivan ignored), Shen cleared his throat softly, stepping up to the girl. "Is there something wrong with your head?" he queried. "I'm sorry to be an imposition," he added, hoping a blanket apology would cover the inconvenience of the tour.
Ivan rolled his eyes at all the thanking and kowtowing - it was the damnedest ******** thing. He knew his WEAPON had some guts in him - when they met he'd had the feel of a man who could snap your spine in half - but there was no trace of it now. Ivan could've been looking at a whole 'nother animal. It was like the noodle shop owner promising him beef and then giving him tofu. ********, whatever.
"Missions," he repeated, with a hitch of a smile. So this was where the action was at.
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Posted: Tue Sep 08, 2009 4:29 am
Ashie had nearly forgotten what they had originally been talking about, so it took her a few moments to decipher Shen's comment. When she did, however, a brilliant smile crossed her face, lighting up her bright blue eyes. "Awesome!" She giggled, "That's always good to know!"
Shen's next comment managed to completely confound her, though, and Ashie frowned slightly before deciding it wasn't worth her stressing over. "Nothing's wrong with my head, I think? You just said it was fine!" A small pout appeared on her lips before her expressive face once again broke into a smile. "You guys would never be an imposition, whatever that means!"
Realizing that their conversation had taken them to the missions area, Ashie stopped to wave her drink towards a door before giving a light knock. "This, is Axie's office. She's usually in there doing something, so feel free to drop in whenever!" Ashie grinned widely, thinking of all the times she'd done just that. Leaning closer, she pressed her ear to the door, eyes looking up towards the ceiling as she concentrated. "Ooopsie! Sounds like nobody is in there right now... too bad." She pouted. "Well, let's move on then!"
A few steps took them over to the missions board, which showed the current status of all missions, taken or available. Poking lightly at one of the tags, Ashie shrugged lightly before turning to face the pair. "This is the missions board. I'm not too sure why everyone wants to see it, but here you go!" Taking another sip from her drink, Ashie continued, "This is where you'd pick up all the missions and stuff, though if you're like Lucien and Z, sometimes you don't need to pick them up from here..." A finger tapped consideringly against her chin as Ashie tried to figure out why exactly, and failed.
Shaking her head to dispel the thought, Ashie giggled again. "Where to next, then?"
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Posted: Tue Sep 08, 2009 5:23 am
Shen adopted the amenable smile he used whenever he felt bewildered or out of his depth. The sun would rise in the west before he allowed the emotion to cross his features - maybe that was why the way Ashie spoke and showed hers so easily took him off guard. They'd only met briefly but Shen could deduce that she talked more from her mouth than her thoughts, and lost track of things easily. Somehow that made her achievements even more impressive. Shen's smile turned genuine, charmed.
At Ashie's words, Ivan snorted, making the connection between 'Axie' and the plaque on the office door that read Alexis Laurent. Drop in? Ivan wasn't the type to keep his ear to the ground, but you didn't have to be a rumour-shark to know that if you disturbed the beast you'd better not be too attached to your balls.
"R-ight," he muttered, and may or may not have puffed his cheeks in relief when the room proved empty. He needed all his assets if was gunna harvest some soul and bust the joint - he was already missing the ******** eye. So. Mission HQ. Blah blah blah. Ivan'd been here long enough to know the lay of the land - at least, which general areas to avoid. Bored, his dwindling interest was only perked when Ashie mentioned Lucien and Z, whose reputations preceded them like a 14-tonne train. Knowing wasn't the same as seeing after all - Ivan made it a habit not to enter classrooms if he had the choice. Classroom #7 on the other hand...
"Hey. Ashie. You got a list of good places to hang?"
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Posted: Tue Sep 08, 2009 7:03 am
"Hmm..." Ashie's brilliant blue eyes were thoughtful for approximately two seconds before resuming their usual happy expression. "I don't know, really... but there's a list of popular places floating around somewhere?" She giggled again, thinking about the places she liked to go. "I usually visit places like DeathBUCKS and CLASSROOM #7, as well as the gym! But there's places Axie says I'm not allowed to go... and oh!" Blue eyes turned almost impossibly wide as she leaned closer, dropping her voice to a whisper. "Don't ever bring up #7 in front of Axie! She doesn't know!"
Taking a light step back, Ashie shrugged. "I like the Icecream Parlor too, but I always manage to forget the name..." Another small frown before it was wiped away as she enthusiastically sucked at the straw in her drink. Double Dees were soooo good, maybe she needed to go back for another one?
That thought in mind, she eyed the pair as they stood in the Missions hallway. "Anywhere else?"
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Posted: Tue Sep 08, 2009 9:34 pm
Ivan's answering smile was full of knives. #7 was known to any schmuck that didn't have their nose buried in a book - but places even half of the Laurent duo wasn't allowed to go? Interesting... "Won't breathe a word," he grinned, but Ashie had already skip-hopped onto the next thought in that weirdly wired head of hers, draining more of the drink with un-self-conscious slurping noises. And people said Ivan was ADD. This girl was on a different rung of the crazy ladder altogether; not that it was necessarily a bad thing. Bubbly and chockful of useful information - he wouldn't even have to ask and she might just let slip a secret.
"Nah, we're done here." Giving an expressive half-shrug in goodbye, he reached over and caught Shen by the sleeve-covered arm, intent on seeing what the puppy could do. Was there a training ground or something? If not, maybe he'd kick open #5 and kick out the ducklings. "Nice meeting ya," he threw over his shoulder.
It was only self-discipline and iron-sure reflexes that stopped Shen from reacting messily when Ivan seized his arm. It was impossible to say what made him more wary - the uncomfortable grip or the sudden unholy light in his TECHNICIAN's eyes. Ivan had a lazy, slow way of moving that belied the speed which he was capable of - the overall impression was of a disturbed snake uncoiling to strike. "Where are we-" He bit off his words, twisting to face Ashie even as he was being dragged away. "It's called Nomnomnom," he supplied, "Thank you very much for the tour!"
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ikshiva rolled 1 100-sided dice:
76
Total: 76 (1-100)
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Posted: Wed Sep 09, 2009 6:19 am
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