Blooming Lotus [Invitation Only]

[Naughty Dog Jak]

Spike Spiegel
x
● Status: Relaxed/Watchful
● Current Location: Front entryway steps
● Objective: Assist Ness
● Attire: Silk dress shirt/suit jacket
● Theme: Rush

════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════

Continuing with slow but steady paces toward the door, Spike’s footsteps were neither loud nor prominent amid the voices of those present and the footfall of others now also in motion, the same destination as himself in mind . Seeing that the new arrival made eye-contact when spoken to, yet continued to remain silent, Spike appeared moderately bemused whilst he walked on with Ryuu alongside, keeping a watchful eye on the new guest as she presently followed. Yet in spite of his visibly forgiving reaction, in reality Spike was inwardly debating as to whether the woman was incapable of speech, merely shy or had another reason entirely for her silence, to which his curiously as well as his caution piqued all the more. One thing that was quickly apparent to Spike however was a strange sense of anxiety that lingered about the new arrival as she continued to glance about her, with a haste and regularity that clearly suggested she too had caution on her mind. The woman’s elegant, although near emotionless face was not telling and did not communicate a great deal; pale features locked in the most neutral of expressions. Even her silver gaze, distinctive as it was, remained guarded and difficult to read. Spike was certain at this point; he would need to maintain a close eye on this woman, at least until he could gather more information about her and establish her true intent.

Hearing Ryuu’s laughter did however renew Spike’s sense of ease as he glanced back at his space-travelling comrades, they too moving to follow along as the group began toward the main building, looking to exit the shrine in turn. Once he stepped out of the door, Spike spared one last glance back at the statue, his expression strangely unreadable for some seconds whilst he did so. In that instant his mind was drawn back to when he first fully regained consciousness, a day or so after the confrontation with Scratch had ended.
Disbelief, that was what he inwardly felt. Strangely numb, even now; Mistress had always been so calm, even when she probably knew the eventual outcome the instant Scratch discovered her location. From one situation to the next, she never shied from assisting those about her to the best of her ability and was a constant that everyone had come to rely on, it seemed unreal just as much as it was deeply saddening to think she was truly gone.
But then nothing seemed to phase her, nor did he ever hear her complain, she simply continued on regardless, no matter what the cost to herself.
For that and many reasons besides, she always had his greatest respect and admiration, openly admitting it or not; it was something that would never change.

Setting his gaze on the terrain beyond the shrine, Spike could hear Nolan finally speak up once again amongst those also emerging out into the grounds, to which he looked away from the new guest and glanced back at the necromancer; even in the fading light it was clear Nolan was not in the best of shape. Missing ever since the battle concluded, as the days went by Spike reluctantly began to assume the worst until Nolan finally reappeared a day ago, but was certainly still the worse for wear and likely needing more medical treatment than he cared to admit. Although scanning the silhouetted trees ahead, outlines apparent in the colours of the sunset and the flickering lanterns arranged about the area, Spike gave a contemplative hum and a nod upon hearing the new arrival’s comment regarding the sustained beauty of the garden. True as it may have been, she had not yet answered his question, to which his eyes narrowed slightly as he regarded the woman whilst she took a brief pause; clearly quite mystified with the landscape. It was only when she looked directly toward him and offered a name that his expression softened once again and a small lop-sided smile appeared on his face.
”Okay, Ness it is.”
Choosing his words carefully, Spike paused when he also heard Ryuu’s quiet response and turned to look toward her as they walked. She also seemed to look in his direction at this point, to which she then glanced back at Nolan and gradually released her hold on his hand with a small smile, to which Spike returned an understanding smile of his own and allowed her hand to slip from his. As Ryuu proceeded toward Nolan, Spike then returned his attention to Ness, his eyebrows rising slightly at not only her tone as she continued speaking, but also her use of his name; he knew he hadn’t introduced himself yet, but then perhaps she had overheard his name, Edward’s babbling was certainly loud enough. Upon reaching the steps leading up toward the main entrance of the building, Spike paused, placing his foot upon the first of the steps leading upward and looking over Ness’ appearance more carefully. It was true her current clothing did not quite match the setting of a party, the manner in which she grasped the scarf about her neck made it clear she was both aware and uncomfortable of this fact and likely more besides, to which Spike gave a casual shrug; even with such a clothing choice her finely crafted features and flowing silver hair did not look any less remarkable. Stoic and perhaps even a little socially inept, she was undoubtedly lovely to look upon nonetheless.
”...So you missed the memo, no reason to get touchy about it. This is meant to be a party for anyone to enjoy, that includes you. I figure there has to be something that’ll appeal...”
Smirking somewhat at this, Spike paused some seconds more, looking beyond Ness and toward the others also following along; Ryuu now seemed to be falling into step with Nolan a short distance away as they spoke whilst Hanyo seemed to veer off from the group, disappearing amongst the shadows with a thoughtful expression on her face.

Looking back toward Ness, a small lop-sided smile remained on Spike's face as he gestured toward the building before he turned and continued up the steps, quickly closing in on the door at it's summit.

═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════

[ScorpionsApprentice]

_____[Vanessa Courtez]

My x hot x look

[Theme of the Day]: [x]_____

Vanessa tried to clear her mind once she caught certain things. Sometimes, it gave her a headache, and reading so many new thoughts caused nothing short of such. Although, perhaps it was just the anxiety of such a large social gathering that was causing the onsetting migrane. Either way, it would help to keep her mind blank. Ryuu was a jorogumo, which the psychic had no idea what that was until she dug deeper, regrettably. The Korinian was a bit unnerved by spiders, although she noted Ryuu was more concerned with healing than she was with biting or poison. Just like with Nolan, Vanessa pushed the walls of her mind up to block Ryuu out, if only to keep her nerves from growing more jolted with unease.

Spike's memory reached out to her, recounting a woman Ness would never meet. Almost simultaneously, another far darker mind reached out to her, though it was tinted with a bit of lost woes at the thought of the very same woman. The mistress, now encased in stone, was thick on everyone's mind tonight. The moment Hanyo's thoughts twisted to blood and sex, she too was pushed away from Vanessa's mind with the psychic's rapidly growing walls. One by one, they were all blocked out, the last of them being Spike himself. His suspicion was growing of her, and he miscalculated the stem of her 'touchiness' by quite the long shot. Of course, she couldn't blame him; she was the mindreader, and quite good a guarding her own thoughts. Still, his accusation caused her eyes to narrow for a slight moment, the soft muscles beneath her left eye twitching involuntarily at the sharp spike of anger his assumption caused to course through her veins.

Her slender fingers gripped a little tighter around her scarf, and her nostrils flared once as she fought to keep her blood pressure under control. Steadily, her legs glided up the stairs after him at a slow pace. His smirk made her heart whine with a dull throb, but she didn't really know why. She had already pushed his thoughts away from her mind from her anger, which made her question whether he was mocking her or not. She had half a mind to check as he paused to hold the door open for her and the others trailing up the steps. The psychic didn't wait for him as she stormed into the inn's main building. Instead, her mind lashed out to grasp at the location of this place she was meant to be brought to, though none of them would realize what she was plucking from their brains. It was easy to get a layout from Spike and Ryuu, who seemed the most knowledgeable about the place, and she retreated from their minds the moment she found what it was she was looking for; a mental map. Odd as it may see, she no longer waited for anyone to join her. Instead, she stormed off on her own, knowing exactly where she was going as she navigated the hall of the first floor.

The heels of her boots clicked loudly as she walked with purpose, causing anyone who wanted to keep up with her to have to jog after her heated pace. It didn't take her long to reach the sitting room, and she didn't stop her marching once she was inside the rather large room. Despite getting a glimpse of what it was already, she didn't quite expect what she had seen. The room was finely decorated, with paper lanterns that reflected all the colors of the garden outside. They hung from the ceiling, soft candles lit within them, causing the seemingly hand-crafted paintings upon their surface to dance with a soft orange light. The floor was laid out with magnificent red carpets, stitched with gold and black, that she knew could be rolled up and tucked away at the end of the festivities, and the plain wooden tables were covered with embroidered white table clothes, that had red and black etching in them so deep, the colors evenly balanced each other out. Each table was set with a candle, and place mats were already set out for guests to use. Every wall was littered with an odd assortment of things. Letters or memos to their lost founder, childish crafts, and beautiful paintings. Everything hanging had been made by hand: necklaces, hats, and other things Vanessa didn't have a name for yet, all tribute to the celebration, to the Mistress.

The psychic had to stop as she took it all in, her silver eyes flickering around the room with much more fevered interest than she took in any of the patrons outside. The black pillows were still in place, and she regarded them curiously, since she did not know they were supposed to be sat upon. The fragrance from the candles eased her tension a bit, but that relief quickly disappeared when other people began to enter. Vanessa didn't turn to face them, instead keeping her eyes glued to the wall as she studied what intricate things it currently held, her feet slowly bringing her to step closer to it.

[Zelic Frobe]

☼Mårʈin, ʈhe Wizårɗ☪

People who didn't know better accused cats of not having tear ducts. As of the recent events, Martin proved them horribly wrong. Sitting alone at the top of the newly rebuilt Blooming Lotus Inn, the small black cat cried. The Mistress had been his one constant friend and companion in his travels throughout other worlds. They knew a lot about each other, and out of anyone he had ever met, the wizard loved her the most. Not sexual love, but the kind of love that develops between two friends who had known each other for what seemed like eons.

As the days passed, nothing really held the same sort of meaning to him. Sure the sun shone and the birds chirped, but he didn't feel much like napping in the light or hunting the winged beasts. Martin knew that soon he would leave with Yuuko to learn magic, but lately even magic was losing its interesting profoundness, and he found himself acting more like a cat than a wizard, even going as far as ignoring other guests at the inn and eating what food was given to him silently.

It was today, the day of the memorial service, that Martin finally decided to interact with people again. He supposed that if the Mistress were gone, he could at least get to know Ryuu a little better, and perhaps one day they'd be close friends as well. It was the most optimistic he could get at the moment, although the tax of his thoughts prevented him from taking notice of the newcomer and the power she radiated.

Sullenly walking up to the jorogumo, Martin lamely pawed at the hem of Ryuu's yukata in an attempt to get her attention.

(it's good to be back! sorry I missed out on the end of the battle. Midterms were last week and I had to focus.)

[xDeaMagickax]

Я Ɏ Ʉ Ʉ
✿{Song of My Soul ~ Shiko No Uta}✿xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx✿{Kimono ~ Black and White Floral}✿xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx✿{Location ~ Sitting Room}✿




As Ryuu watched Nolan's blind eyes look past her in pain, the young jorogumo couldn't help, but take it in. The loss of her sister indeed weighed heavy over many, but Nolan's might have been the greatest pain beside her own in the loss. Grasping the battered necromancer's arm and linking their arms, "It's really no trouble. You stay up as long as you like, Nolan-san. Today is a day to relax and enjoy the surrounding beauty. I wish she were here too..." her last sentence said very softly to him. As the two of them moved with the crowd up to the staircase, Ryuu felt a paw on her thigh reaching up with the hem of her short black and white kimono being tugged. The young jorogumo turning her head, Ryuu paused and looked down at the feline wizard, "Martin-san? Is there something I can help you with? Come up with us to the Sitting Room." She encouraged the wizard to join them and continued to help Nolan up the stairs by every once in a while saying to step up in the beginning so he could get a feel for the stair spacing.

Letting the necromancer lean on her and watching Spike a short distance in front of them, Ryuu was amazed at everything that had happened in the last week. The magic in this place was so strong and within that week she had obtained a much larger home for guests. For moments after she thought upon why Spike hadn't even played with the notion of leaving Blooming Lotus with his companions. A slight blush in her cheeks, she didn't have the heart to ask him why he stayed because she already knew the answer. Spike stayed because of her, because of their love. That feeling helped her sorrow in vast quantities and as soon as she began to think of what this would be like without him by her side, she shook her head slightly and placed a smile on her lips. She didn't have to think that way because he was right there, within arm's reach.

As Ness was the first to enter the rather Sitting Room with Spike in tow, the main hall wall was gone making the entertainment room much larger than before. Ryuu, Nolan, and Martin were behind and came up to the top entering the building. The Sitting Room finely decorated thanks to a couple of the current residents and Ryuu, the black, red, white, and gold all complimented each other. The wall that the mementos hung on were mostly of purple letter paper and amethyst infused jewelry, her big sister's favorite color. An ukiyoe painting of Mistress playing the Satsuma Biwa hung over the trinkets.

The hall to the First Floor bedrooms was still off to the left while the stairs were still near the back sliding door to Zen Garden with the Kitchen on the left. The Second Floor rooms had balconies still, but over looking more scenery than before and darker railing. Spike and Ryuu taking the largest room, it was completely redone from being blown out during the battle. It was the room Ryuu felt the most comfortable. Nolan still had his first room at the end of the hall, the guest rooms still nice, yet simple, some of the residents that stayed after the battle put a bit of their own touch in their rooms. As Ryuu moved with Nolan toward the hall, Martin and Ryuu spoke.

[Naughty Dog Jak]

Spike Spiegel
x
● Status: Relaxed/Suspicious
● Current Location: Sitting Room
● Objective: Assist Ness
● Attire: Silk dress shirt/suit jacket
● Theme: Rush

════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════

Glancing back just after he took several steps upward, almost immediately Spike noticed a small but definite flash of irritation in Ness’ eyes as she followed along behind him, offering no response to his comment. Her pace seemed consistently slower and lacking the motivational increase he’d hoped for; obviously joking with Ness had not been all that effective, she clearly didn’t see a funny side to her current situation, whatever it truly may have been.
”Or not…”
This attempt at humour had definitely fallen on unamused ears, to which Spike’s smile faded , his eyes flicking back to those also scaling the stairs a short distance behind them. Jet, Faye and Edward were scaling the steps at a slower rate and seemed to be talking amongst each other whilst Ein scampered just ahead of them, although they seemed to be taking the rear purely because Edward was already pulling at her dress and receiving some scolding from Faye. Sparing his space-travelling comrades only a fleeting glance, largely because Edward misbehaving was nothing new, Spike's attention then settled on Ryuu whilst she assisted Nolan up the stairs a few steps behind Ness and himself; it seemed they were in the midst of conversation just out of earshot, to which Spike's gaze unavoidably lingered on her for some seconds more. Presently Ryuu looked in his direction, her cheeks a slightly darker shade as she spared him an affectionate smile, one of which he returned before turning and resuming his movement up the stairs leading to the doorway. Upon greater consideration, there was quite a number of them as a group moving toward the main entrance and Edward was making quite a lot of noise, as usual; someone more inclined toward quieter and more solitary activities would likely find the sight slightly rowdy and unappealing. Musing on this as he continued climbing the steps, Ness still did not say a word, to which Spike thought further on what could cause her behave in such a manner. Considering her suspicious behaviour, Spike did not want to ignore it completely, but he did not wish to come across as unwelcoming either. She did seem more introverted than most, that was already glaringly obvious, as to why however was yet to be seen.

Reaching the summit of the steps and proceeding toward the main entrance of the building, Spike paused only to place his hand on the heavy oak door, glancing back as he applied pressure to its surface and presently the Sitting Room was revealed as the door creaked open, gold and amethyst decorations in particular glimmering in the light. Holding the door open with a patient expression whilst he waited for Ness to climb the last few steps, words did not even have time to formulate in Spike’s mind, let alone leave his mouth as the woman increased her pace all the more, reaching the top of the steps and continuing straight past him into the building without a word. Blinking with a somewhat bemused expression, Spike peered into the building to see Ness quickly cross the room, yet still silent.
”…O-kay?”
Presently releasing the door and leaving it open so others could continue to enter and he could pursue Ness, Spike scanned the ornately decorated room as he resumed walking quite briskly toward where the woman came to a halt. The room was doused in a warm light, partially from the number of lanterns about the room and was currently unoccupied at this point, with the exception of Ness and himself. Glancing over the carefully crafted decorations that rested upon the tables and walls, the room was predominantly red, black, white and gold with all the current displays in place, although one wall was dotted with varied shades of amethyst, a painting of Mistress was placed centrally amongst them. Settling his sights on Ness once again, a slight frown appeared on Spike's face as he paused several paces from the woman as she continued to take in the appearance of the room.
”...You're pretty gung-ho, aren't you?”
In spite of his lighthearted comment, Spike’s expression was unusually serious as he eyed Ness, continuing to stand in place a short distance into the room, the flickering of the lantern-light currently the only noticeable movement as he did so, shadows dancing across various table surfaces and the dloor. Who are you really…? The question lingered in Spike's mind only a matter of seconds before further movement could be heard outside the door, to which Ryuu, Nolan and Martin emerged into the room also, distracting him and changing the atmosphere of the room considerably. Ein skittered into the room shortly afterward, barking once or twice with Edward scampering along in his wake cheering, presently followed by both Jet and Faye, the latter looking somewhat irritated for Edward barging past her.

═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════

OOC: EDITED.
Sorry for the holdup on editing, I had to cut out quite a lot.

[Zelic Frobe]

✿xxxxxŦαkαħαşħ𝔦 Ħ𝔦𝖒𝔦kσxxxxx✿

£σcαʈ𝔦σŋ: Memorial Service
Åcʈ𝔦σŋ: mood music
Yʊkαʈα Ċσ𝔩σѓ: White with indigo butterflies
❀ ✿ ❀ ✿ ❀ ✿ ❀ ✿ ❀ ✿ ❀ ✿ ❀ ✿ ❀ ✿ ❀ ✿ ❀ ✿❀ ✿ ❀ ✿ ❀ ✿ ❀ ✿ ❀ ✿ ❀ ✿

Himiko sat outside, playing Minoru Miki on the koto, which had either been reconstructed through the magic of the crystal or had miraculously avoided damage despite the destruction. It was a sad day, though the young woman found that she had no tears to shed; not out of disrespect, but instead out of respect. She was employed to perform by the Mistress, and with the remembrance being held to her, Himiko felt it was her duty to perform for the Mistress.

She had found her money-bag a few days ago, and had taken the time to go out and get herself a few new yukatas, one of which she chose to wear for the occasion. It had been a nice respite from the reconstruction, which had magically finished itself whilst she was out. Now that she was back, however, she could turn her attention back to her duties.

The young woman breathed deep and sighed, letting the music flow easily. As she looked out across the grounds and through the inn her fingers played lightly over the strings, allowing the music to breathe life into the still air. Himiko could spot Hanyo sulking under a tree, and she smiled. She knew that all the succubus needed was some time to herself, some time to cope and figure herself out. and that was fine with her. As far as she was concerned, Hanyo could have all the time she needed; neither of them were going very far.

Himiko's thoughts drifted warmly over to the Mistress, who had helped her out so much by giving her sanctuary, a job, and a whole new outlook on life. The pendant given to her by Yuuko hung around her neck, the amethyst stone standing out nicely with the purple obi. Sighing again, Minoru Miki ended, yet Himiko continued to play, changing the chords in a brief fill to ease herself into Spring River Flower Moon Night. Though she had been playing for nearly an hour she didn't feel tired in the slightest. The day was warm, and though the time was sad, Himiko couldn't help but feel relaxed and at ease. It seemed the Mistress was right where she wanted to be, and if that was the case, then Himiko felt she had no reason to be sad.

[ruroken darkblade]

Listening to:

xxxx☠ ☠ ☠ ☠ ☠ ☠ ☠ ☠ ☠ ☠ ☠ ☠ ☠ ☠ ☠

Now I lay you down to sleep. For your soul is mine to keep...

▇▇▇ ▇▇▇ ▇▇▇ ▇▇▇ ▇▇▇ ▇▇▇ ▇▇▇



Greatfully, Nolan leaned against Ryuu as she helped him up the stairs. His feet had felt numb until now, just carrying him along somehow. It wasn't until he tried to push against the first step that a pain shot up from his ankle. Though he did not let it show in his face. The necromancer just leaned against her a bit more as they slowly made their way up.
At this time other things began to go through his mind. He was trying to push the sadness away, not wanting to be the wet blanket and all. Being a depressed cry-baby wasn't him and it was nothing he ever wanted to be. Still it was the first time he had lost someone so dear to him. The first time life itself meant something more than a tool to be used for his own purposes. Also because he could not raise her back. He felt like a failure.
Nolan shook his head. and started to wonder about the Mistress's room. This was supposed to be a time for celebration. After all as far as he knew Ryuu didn't smoke and the Mistress used to have all those beautiful plants and smoking accessories in her room. He'd have to ask about that. He did like that pipe and would love to be able to either go up and take care of them or have the plants moved to his room.
They paused and he heard Ryuu start speaking to Martian. Such a nice kitty. He wished Amano was that much of a gentlemen...gentlecat?
" yeah come on and hang with us" Nolan offered weakly but cheerfully.





▇▇▇ ▇▇▇ ▇▇▇ ▇▇▇ ▇▇▇ ▇▇▇ ▇▇▇

When you die, you will wake. Now your bidding is mine to make...

[ScorpionsApprentice]

_____[Vanessa Courtez]

My x hot x look

[Theme of the Day]: [x]_____

Vanessa was calmed as she studied each purple ornament, for it reminded her of the sky of her home planet. It was one of the few things she remembered vividly of that world, a vast purple sky over endless greenery. In the heat of the day, it almost turned lavender, and toward dusk it darkened to indigo. Purple was her favorite color because of this, one of the few good memories she still carried, which she could probably count all of on one hand if she tried. She stopped in front of an amethyst necklace, and tilted her head a little as she studied it, doing her best to ignore the flocks of people trickling in. There was music playing in the background, but for the most part, it filtered in and out of Vanessa's head without much thought.

Vanessa didn't look at Spike when he stopped a few feet behind her. She had no idea what gung-ho meant, which forced the alien to tap into the faculties of his mind once more to put context to the word. It inevitably allowed her access to his next lingering thought. That finally caused the psychic's gaze to shift, if ever the slightest to cast a careless glance over her shoulder. Her chin didn't even twist all the way to her shoulder. As he looked away, Vanessa finally turned her head enough to look at him properly. Her eyes didn't follow his sight toward the door, for she knew the patrons entering without having to study them. Instead, she stepped prominently with a single boot to twist her body enough to half face the man who had been tailing her since the moment she appeared. The moment Spike turned his gaze back to her, Vanessa's eyes narrowed considerably, and she leaned toward him a bit, almost playfully.

"You'll never know," she said to him softly. It was an easy answer to his comment of her being 'gung-ho', but only he would question which question she was truly answering, and his suspicions would be more than accurate. Her tone teetered on the edge of a threat and taunting sarcasm, and her eyes softened slightly as she kept his gaze for but a second longer. Then, she strode past him effortlessly, her boots almost soundless against the thick carpets. She almost seemed lax suddenly, despite the thick air still surrounding her. Too many people were flooding in, and the hyper presence of Edward and Ein were quickly causing her momentary calm to dissipate; however, Vanessa couldn't help but look over at the group slowly dispersing from the door. She paused for half a moment as her eyes settled upon another small creature among the flock; a tiny black cat.

Martin. And it was surprising to note this cat was no ordinary feline; he had a vast consciousness, intelligence that was abnormally high for a feline, and even some humans, for that matter. Not to mention, he also practiced magic, which struck the psychic as intriguing. Vanessa liked animals, and the furrier they were, the better. Only, just with people, she couldn't handle ones that were too energetic, loud, or moved too quickly, which immediately made Ein unnerve her, despite how cute he was. Martin however, despite the sorrowful mien the cat walked with, struck a hopeful desire in Vanessa. She wanted to say hello to him, maybe even play with him, and she was tempted to reach her telepathy out to speak with him mentally.

There were too many people surrounding him though, and she wasn't ready. As if the people pushing in from the door were a plague, Vanessa turned her back on them, and slowly sauntered away toward the back wall. Briefly, her eyes flickered down the hallway leading toward the first floor bedrooms, but she moseyed passed the corridor to continue toward the glass doors at the back. Her hands curled into her opposite sleeves, fingers gripping around her forearms until all of her skin was hidden beneath black but her ivory face and hair. With hard eyes, Vanessa stopped just a few inches from the glass as she glared out at the garden beyond.

[Zelic Frobe]

☼Mårʈin, ʈhe Wizårɗ☪

Martin followed Ryuu's heels up the stairs and into the inn, wondering how to phrase his words. A newcomer brushed past them and he caught a whiff of her power. It sparked something in him and he paused, turning to watch her receding figure, curious, but not enough where it overrode his desire to speak to Ryuu and he continued to follow her.

"Well," he said softly enough for her (and Nolan) to hear, "I'd like to make sure my prior arrangements with your sister are still fine to keep. You know, coming in at odd hours, paying with things that aren't money, bothering you on a regular basis..." He added the last bit quietly, though he wouldn't be surprised if she heard him. He cleared his throat and continued. "I mean, I am the longest running patron around here." Of course he was avoiding the real subject, but what his meaning and tone said was that he needed her approval of a constant friendship such as he and the Mistress had.

[Naughty Dog Jak]

__

__■ Location(s): Sitting Room
__■ Taking in the proceedings: Jet Black, Faye Valentine
__■ Present but already distracted: Edward (Wong Hau Pepelu Tivrusky IV), Ein (The dog).
__■ Theme: Cat Blues

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Seeing that the group were looking to venture back toward the building, Jet began to ponder as to whether they should have just waited in the Sitting Room to begin with, although then they would have missed their opportunity to pay their respects to the previous owner of the venue. Faye seemed distracted with Ein running about her ankles with Edward close behind, but Jet did spend a moment in silence simply staring at the faceless stone figures, expression thoughtful. Of the Bebop crew, only Spike had known this woman, although it was debatable now to refer to him as such since it was becoming increasingly clear Spike’s intent to remain at this location had not changed. Regardless, Jet had no issue with paying his respects whilst others present conversed, his eyes however slowly drifted toward the unknown woman nearby; she seemed remarkably silent just as she was remarkably beautiful, but her presence and timing even made Jet feel strangely uneasy. Seeing that Spike was already moving toward the door with the newcomer in tow, Ryuu presently doing the same alongside, Jet reasoned Spike felt similarly about this new arrival, although his approach was to face the matter head-on, typically.

Crossing the grassy expanse back toward the stairs leading up to the building, Jet removed his sunglasses with a sigh, seeing that the sun had now reached such a low point it provided little light and the lanterns dotted about the trees and plants were now the primary source of light. Pausing to look upon the flickering flame of a nearby lantern with a distant look in his eyes, it was only Faye coughing loudly that drew him back from his daze. Giving an impatient sigh, Faye brushed past Jet as she began up the steps not far behind those led by Ryuu and Spike, the newcomer however did seem to be quite insistent on taking the lead. Giving Faye a disgruntled look, Jet resumed his approach toward the steps and started ascending them also; Edward however remained in the bushes nearby.
“I didn’t think you were the type to space out like that, I thought that was Spike’s department.”
”I was thinking, not spacing out. There’s a difference.”
Glancing back at Jet, Faye smirked at his comment which was immediately followed by a chuckle by Edward, to which she leapt from the bushes and charged up the steps behind them.
”Spacey space, floaty float!”
Lifting Ein from the step below her and balancing him on her head once again, Edward whooped as she ran on with the dog unwillingly carried along, to which he gave a small reluctant bark.
“ Edward...”
“Arrr!”
Already ahead of both Jet and Faye, Edward lowered Ein to the steps before going onto all fours herself, imitating the corgi as he scampered up the stairs, pausing only to pull at the pink dress she wore with a growl imitative of Ein.
”It was a mistake to make her wear that...”
Scowling, Faye glanced up at Jet in annoyance before increasing her pace and marching up the steps toward Edward with a view to stop her tearing the dress, to which Jet wisely kept his distance.

Upon finally reaching the summit of the stairs, Jet and Faye continued on in the wake of Ryuu, Nolan and Martin as they proceeded into the main building, dispersing into the Sitting Room as they spoke amongst themselves. Edward on the other hand had taken the rear up until Jet and Faye attempted to enter the building, to which she had a sudden burst of speed, charging past Jet and Faye with Ein scampering between her legs and running into the room with several short barks.
“Indoors, indoors indoors! Time for toasty tea!”
Ignoring Faye‘s scowling, Edward’s random glances about the ornately decorated room finally led her gaze to settle upon Ness and Spike, to which she looked slightly confused at Ness’ retreat to the window, but did not stop her approach as she then dove at Spike’s leg, wrapping herself around his leg and grinning.
“Ed found the Spike-person!”
Seeing that Edward was distracted, Ein gave an inward sigh of relief, to which the corgi stood panting for some seconds as he looked about the room also; the data dog was exceptionally fond of Edward, but sometimes her energy was too much for even him, to which even a short reprieve from play was welcome. Sniffing the air as he took in his surroundings, Ein glanced at Jet and Faye as they spoke to each other, then Ryuu and Nolan; the cat was of interest but then the woman with the strange manner was even moreso, to which he began to pace toward Ness, pausing only to sniff at her foot tentatively from as great a distance his small form would allow.

[xDeaMagickax]

Я Ɏ Ʉ Ʉ
✿{Song of My Soul ~ Shiko No Uta}✿xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx✿{Kimono ~ Black and White Floral}✿xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx✿{Location ~ Room 1, Kitchen, Sitting Room}✿




Martin's concerns about his current standing at Blooming Lotus made Ryuu glance down at the magical cat intrigued. "You are welcome at any time, Martin-san and I have seen you come and pay with magical trinkets instead of money. My sister accepted any kind of payment, even work like she had from Himiko-chan when she first arrived or Spike when he first came here. I think Spike and I will go the same out of respect for her, there is no need to change the way she did things," Ryuu was speaking softly as she and Nolan moved as one through the exciting atmosphere Ed was giving off while running about in the Sitting Room. That is until she found Spike's leg and the sight made the young jorogumo giggle a bit before continuing her conversation with Martin, "I don't think there is anything for you to be worried about, Martin-san. Blooming Lotus Inn still stands as a place of rest for travelers like yourself, my sister would have wanted you to keep visiting." Giving the magical cat a reassuring smile, she spoke with kindness, "Have fun tonight and relax, tonight is supposed to be about enjoying the company of others. Yuuko-sama said she would be coming later tonight, I wonder if she'll bring Mokona-kun."

Wondering a loud, Ryuu hoped that her words eased the wizard's mind as her and Nolan continued down the hall off to the right towards his room. Still room number 1, they arrived and the young jorogumo opened the sliding door for him. "We're here at your room, Nolan-san," she said entering while loosening her hold on his arm. "I wanted to tell you," she spoke softly looking over the necromancer's wrappings and current clothes, "I know you arrived again merely this morning, but a lot has happened. There was a Lotus Crystal that Yuuko-sama gave me and it restored the damaged building and the life of my Zen Garden. I've also learned a little about myself.. my webbing has healing properties and Spike has healed as a larger rapid pace for a human being because we've been doing webbing treatments together."

Releasing the necromancer, Ryuu fiddled with her fingers for a moment, "If you want, I can treat you too... I've been working on the potency of the webbing, making it more powerful and I'm still trying. So if you want me to, the next time you need to be wrapped I'd like for you to come to me. I know I'm not my sister," she said shyly, "but I want to help." Waving away her serious tone, Ryuu laughed a bit of an awkward laugh, "I'll let you get dressed, tea must be made. I'm really glad you came back Nolan-san." Smiling sweetly to the Necromancer before she softly closed the sliding door after exiting.

With a small sigh, Ryuu noticed that she hadn't taken off her geta sandals upon entering the building so slipped them off and carried them in her fingers. Feet padding softly on the wood flooring of the hall of Rooms, Ryuu hummed to herself as the voices from the Sitting Room got louder and louder. Peering from around the corner, Ryuu smiled and stayed hidden for the moment. Her eyes finding her beloved, she took in his most handsome face and blushed at the thought of wanting to be alone with him more than around all these people. Ryuu didn't let her selfish thought run away with her knowing it was the Grand Re-Opening .She did, however, stare for a bit longer than the others at Ness standing near Mistress' mementos and purple letters of paid respects and condolences to Ryuu for her loss. There was something about her, something really mysterious and at first she was frightened by the feeling she had when Ness was around though she could not describe what exactly this feeling was... it felt like a knot in her stomach trying to wrench free and become stable, but only got tighter, "Maybe I'm just nervous," she said to herself and shook her head.

Coming away from cover, Ryuu across the Sitting Room into the Kitchen on the right side of the room. Hoping to catch Spike's eye, Ryuu gazed at him with a smile while moving to the Kitchen. Upon entering there was a platter of mochi and japanese sweet cakes ready to be served, but the tea had yet to be made so the new hostess opened a cupboard of herbs. Picking the classic Green Tea, Ryuu got the tea pot on the stove and began getting together a tea tray of cups for all to partake. Choosing the black Sakura tea set, she set stacks of three cups and made sure there was plenty for everyone. Soon the whistle of boiling water could be heard and Ryuu removed the hot water to pour it into the Sakura tea pot with Green Tea herbs in a tea ball. Letting it brew, Ryuu took out the platter of sweet cakes first and placed it on one of the low wooden tables in the Sitting Room announcing, "I made these for today, I hope everyone likes them. Tea is coming right out if anyone wants refreshments," then turning to go back into the Kitchen for the tea tray and balanced it pretty well. Arriving back in the Sitting Room, Ryuu didn't say anything and merely set down the tea tray for others to partake, but did bow with an offering hand toward the platter and tea.

[xDeaMagickax]

SERVING

Japanese Dessert Platter


Green Tea

[HanyoWolf]

♔Location: The Shrine♔
♔ BloodLust Level: Minimal♔

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

Well, enough moping. Lady Hanyo stood and stretched herself a bit. She made a rotating motion of her left arm, as if to work out a knot in her shoulder. This arm had been shattered in the battle. Thanks to some vampiric know-how and self healing prowess, she managed to replace it by using a severed limb of one of the demon corpses. However, though it looked normal enough, it still felt like having a bag of sand sewn onto her torso. Speaking of sand, she paused to dig the heels of her palms into her cheeks, massaging her face. The burns of battle had healed, but left her otherwise flawless skin with a rougher consistency, like fine grain sandpaper.

Eh, I'm still a gorgeously sexy succubus. she thought to herself with a smirk.

As she moved towards the newly restored inn, she paused at the shrine erected around the Mistress' statue. There was still that nagging feeling that she left something unsaid. Lady Hanyo wanted to honor the shrine in some way. But what to give? Life of a succubus was sex and blood... neither of which seemed like a proper or appropriate gift. No, what Lady Hanyo had to give was her devotion, as proven by Yuuko's gift. She held the whip in her hands, remembering the vow it took to obtain the weapon... to never leave the Blooming Lotus, but remain always as its Champion and Protector.

She opened her mouth and ran her dark tongue along the sharp end of the whip. It made a slice that immediately caused blood to ooze. The blood wasn't normal, red blood. It was dark in color, almost blackish brown. With no beating heart in her chest, it wasn't oxygenated, after all. It was the remnants of meals, the blood of others that sustained her and flowed in her cold veins. Lady Hanyo licked her lips so the blood stained her mouth. Then, she got to her knees, and kissed the Misstress' stone feet. The black lip print was her gift. Her own blood spilled, honoring the blood spilled by others, by her own hand.

Then, she turned towards the sound of music which she had previously been too preoccupied to notice. There was Himiko, playing her koto, seeming at peace with the world.


"Hey, Little Mouse." she said as she approached.


♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

[xDeaMagickax]

~ Adrien D. Lux ~

xxxxxxxxxxxxx`Who am I? `
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx`~ I'm the ******** Slayer ~ `


Space swirling around a silver aircraft with glowing pink and blue lights shot across the darkness. "Goddamn!" was heard from the glowing cockpit of the Daughntliis gliding up and to the side, a black and green spiked aircraft behind shooting bright lime green laser blasters at the smaller, yet nimble craft. "Yeah?" the husky, but feminine voice questioned as the bright teal eyes of The Daughntliis' pilot scanned the ship's fuel level readings to the left, big trouble... "RIN! Fuel Rods, stat! This a*****e's reeeally makin' me work for this," there was no time to even think of taking this ship behind them on with the Fuel Rods almost running dry. Those light blue glowing cylinders needed to be changed out and this was going to take some careful planning. Behind the pilot's chair on the left side there was a tower made of what looked like glass and tiny bits of thin metal in the shapes of gears, a dimly lit Fuel Rod within the center almost seeming afloat. There was a glowing button just below the Fuel Rod that was meant to eject the rod's case forward and make it easy to switch out with one of the glowing rods just beneath in metal pockets. There were six lined up with an empty space at the end for the current Fuel Rod.

The blond female pilot gripped either prong of the ship's steering and pulled toward her, the silver aircraft pulling up sharply as Rin, Adrien's current escapee, switched out the Fuel Rods. For the moments it took for Rin to replace the rod, the Daughntliis was completely still. The ship following and attacking zoomed right underneath Adrien's ship only to come to a halt. "Go, Rin!!"Adrien called as all the night in the ship except the Fuel Rod glow, "Hurry!" Her heart racing in her strong chest, "Yaaahoohoo!" Adrien cried out in excitement as the lights of the Daughntliis came back online and she jumped directly into Warp Speed with a touch of a few holographic images and away they flew. Adrien didn't even tell Rin to hold on to something and they were suddenly in motion going lightyears per second.

Zoning in on big blue and green, the pilot sat back in her Captain's Chair and brought them out of Warp to coast on the edge of Jupiter. "Earth," she said with a smirk in the corner of her lips and charted a course for her home planet. "That was fuuun heehee," a two toned female voice said from inside the Daughntliis as a small hologram avatar of a gothic blue fairy floated about the c**k pit. "It was a blast,"Adrien said with smirk to the little fairy, "D.O.R.I can you plot a course for somewhere more specific and relaxing? A beach or something! Yeah."
"Right-O Dee! I'll take us somewhere nice."

Pressing a yellow square button off to the right, Adrien's chair moved back and to the side letting her out. Stretching, the young spitfire with the splash of pink in her hair brought her arms up and pulled hearing a couple of pops every now and again. Twisting, then finally cracking her neck and knuckles, Adrien sighed and boxed the air a little bit. Dressed rather casually for a space traveler, Adrien D. Lux sported a pair of black stretchable skinny jeans with combat boots and a plain white tank, a white sports bra underneath. One thing she did have on her person that was a bit spacey was her belt holster. Strapped to her thighs and through belt loops, she holstered two high powered 4000 Series Phasers capable of burning a hole straight through solid metal. Her very own Bonnie&Clyde.

______________________________________________________
Out Of Candy
__________________________
My Ride ~ The Daughntliis [Interior]
Right&Left ~ Bonnie&Clyde The 4000 Series [built in scope for long range targeting]
Navigation ~ D.O.R.I [Sprite Avatar]
Repair Droid ~ D.R.O.O.G Travel Model "Scottie"

Bjork ~ Army of Me

New York City 3014