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 Posted: Mon Feb 20, 2012 1:47 pm
Tension rod in the lock, nice and tight, lockpick sliding in slowly, feel for the--there, that was one--second one was... there...
Roch was doing something illegal again. It probably wasn't a surprise, but he was doing it blatantly during the middle of the day, in the middle of the demon's dorm hallway, and--this was the clincher, to one of his so called best pals.
He was breaking into Xiu's room. And he didn't even look all that guilty. Well, mostly not guilty. He had waited for a class that he was positive Xiu would take, something about manners, and decided to pull his caper. Besides, he wasn't stealing.
He was returning.
And click, the door unlocked.
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Posted: Tue Feb 21, 2012 1:32 am
The first thing that would greet Roch when the door swung open? Growling. A lot of growling.
It sounded like a pair of minipets, in fact, and if he were to look closely, he would likely make out three shapes within the darkness of Xiu's room. One of the shapes--the one that wasn't making any noise, but whose gaze seemed to be focused intently on the reaper--was of Arashi, Xiu's storm melonkit. And then other two...
Without any warning, the dark-colored creature leaped out at Roch, trying to knock him down by attaching his teeth to the boil's ankle. Meanwhile, the other mini who had been growling--something that was distinctly white and pink--immediately darted out of the room, down the hall, and out the demon dorms to search for its master.
Xiu was, in fact, not attending the class that Roch had assumed she would be taking. As someone who practically had proper Halloween etiquette drilled into her head since she was a child, the baku had decided to pass on the class, figuring that she (hopefully) already knew enough about such matters. She had actually been about to head to a friend's room when her Dream Blossom suddenly came running at her, squeaking in alarm. "Shu? Shu, what's...?!" All it took was one look at her mini, and then the baku was off, dashing back towards the demon dorms.
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Posted: Tue Feb 21, 2012 6:09 am
"Son of a witch, you little monster," Roch snapped, tempted to summon his guitar, but killing one of Xiu's little pets would probably get him in some very serious trouble. "Hey, hey, leggo, I ain't doin' anything bad!" he pleaded, shaking his leg to try and get him off.
His hands started patting his pockets, looking for some sort of snack that might get the creature's attention. He pulled out a treat, holding it up. "Hey, hey, go fetch," he said, tossing it into Xiu's room.
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Posted: Fri Feb 24, 2012 1:11 am
Jian only growled louder, his hold on the boil's ankle firm. His gaze followed the treat as it was tossed into the darkness of Xiu's room, but he paid it little mind, his attention immediately falling back onto Roch. He would not fall for that--Xiu's uncle had specifically trained and sent him here to protect the little baku, and by default, that also meant protecting his mistress' room.
He visibly perked up at the sound of footsteps, though he didn't loosen his hold. Not until Shu and Xiu actually came in view, that was. The baku's eyes widened in surprise at the scene, her mouth dropping open. There was a long stretch of silence as she stared blankly at Roch, and then her gaze dropped down to the nightmare flower.
"Jian." She stretched out her hand, and that was all it took for the mini to let go and obediently trot towards the ghoul. Scooping him up, Xiu cast Roch a confused look. "What's going on? What are you doing here? I thought that I..." No, she was positive that she had locked the door.
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Posted: Fri Feb 24, 2012 6:17 am
Roch cursed mentally, getting down on one knee to pull his pants up and examine his ankle. The little jacker had sharp teeth, he noticed, seeing bruising already. His FEAR shield had kept it from piercing the skin, but dang...
"Um..." Roch said, looking up at Xiu. What to do... should he lie to her? "Yo." Yeaaaah, that was intelligent. "I ah... thought you'd be in class or somethin," he added as he stood, shoving his hands in his pockets, his fingers brushing the emblem there. That was why he was there... maybe if he could get himself into the room he could hide it when she wasn't looking!
"I was gonna... drop off your Christmastival gift?" he added, searching his pockets for something more. Seeds, a pick, a bag of balloons-- Would Xiu enjoy water balloons? Oh, there was one of those bouncy ball yoyos!
Okaaay, he was totally reaching here...
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Posted: Wed Feb 29, 2012 5:19 pm
Xiu knit her brows in concern as she watched Roch kneel down, leaning forward and craning her neck in an attempt to see how bad the bite was. "Are you...are you okay? I don't know why he would..." Trailing off, the baku lifted her Nightmare Flower up, looking at him face to face. Jian (unsurprisingly) did not look particularly happy, but what was bothering her the most was the fact that he was growling.
...Maybe she should...hold on to him while Roch was here.
Xiu didn't bother saying anything about his assumption that she was in class--after all, it seemed pointless to say "no I'm not" when she was standing right here--but she cocked her head to the side as she awaited his reply. And it was...a reply that she had not been expecting at all, judging by the blank stare she was giving him.
"Er, Christmastival gift? Roch, it's far past Christmastival, and you didn't have to get me anything anyways!" The last part was noted with a small smile, but her expression changed back to one of confusion as she turned to stare at her door. She was one-hundred percent sure positive that she had locked the door after her. So...
Ah. "...You didn't pick the door lock, did you?" Her voice sounded more knowing that suspicious, "My uncle trained Jian to ward off any 'intruders'."
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Posted: Wed Feb 29, 2012 6:06 pm
"Um... I might have," he admitted, shoving his hands deeper into his pockets. He grabbed the first thing he could reach--oh! His new harmonica! He'd forgotten about that one!
He hauled it out, not noticing the small emblem that got pulled out as well, even as it fell to the ground beside him. "And, y'know, I had a lot of stuff happen to me between Christmastival and now, and I DID come on Christmastival day, but you weren't here and your boilfriend was, so I figured then wasn't the time--"
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Posted: Sat Mar 03, 2012 7:42 pm
If she hadn't been holding Jian, Xiu would have crossed her arms at his confession. As it was, the look on her face was very disapproving, but before she could open her mouth and question why he had done what he did, Roch had pulled out...something.
Xiu wasn't really paying attention to what it was that he was holding, or to what he was saying (otherwise, she definitely would have had something to say at that "boilfriend" comment). No, her gaze had flickered towards the small object that that tumbled from Roch's pocket and onto her carpet. That was...an emblem? It was the right shape and size, at least.
Without answering the reaper, the baku shifted so that she held Jian with one arm as she bent down to retrieve the pin. "You dropped--...?" Turning it over in her hand, her brows shot up in surprise as it realized it was her emblem. Without a word, she looked up at him, her expression questioning. After a moment, she simply held out her hand, indicating that he should take it back.
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Posted: Sat Mar 03, 2012 7:49 pm
He looked at it. There was a trapped expression on his face and he took a step back without thinking. In no way did he move to take it back from her, in fact the expression on his face was almost... scared.
"Oh."
Yeah, that was a great way to put it. Idiot. Slowly his hand went out. He reaaallly didn't want to take it back. He touched her fingers. He folded them closed, over the emblem.
"I can't. I seriously, seriously can't," he told her.
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Posted: Fri Mar 09, 2012 10:50 pm
His reaction was...confusing, to say the least. Xiu's lips immediately fell into a frown at the look--the anxiety?--that crossed the reaper's face as he looked at the emblem. Xiu tried it again, stretching her hand out farther in a gesture that indicated that he should take the object from her.
And then he reached out...only to fold her fingers over the pin.
The baku's expression was confused, and she looked from Roch, to her closed hand, and then back. "...Roch?" It was all that she said, her brows drawn together as she stared up at him.
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Posted: Sat Mar 10, 2012 7:08 am
He pulled his hand away, only to run it over his face. "I've been agonizing over this," he told her, tempted to pace. "I'm already in a fight with Danny over it, its that serious to me, y'know? I just don't think you guys GET it. Hel says the past is in the past, and I should move on already, but SHE don't get it either. See, a juvie record isn't somethin' that just disappears because you ignore it."
He looked her in the eyes. "I've broken into houses, I've been a delivery boil for things that shouldn't be delivered, I've nicked cars, bikes, even a hearse once, I know how to pick locks, hotwire cars, and a few other tricks that... make me surprisingly good at Invi's classes, I'll admit. But--of all the stuff I've listed, which one would you be proud to admit to? Other than the class thing."
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Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2012 6:19 pm
"...So?"
The short and blunt response would have probably once been uncharacteristic for the baku, but she had definitely become more stubborn within the last few months. Determining that it was safe, she gently lowered Jian to the ground before crossing her arms at Roch. When she spoke again, her expression and voice had softened slightly, but they still held that stubborn edge to them.
"Personally, I think Hel has the right idea--the past is the past." Trailing off, she gave a little shake of her head, lips dropping into a frown, "Yes, maybe you have a record, but this is only a problem so long as you make it a problem." If there was one thing Xiu had learned from being in this school, it was that moping over the past wasn't the way to go. Why dwell on the past and what can't be changed when one could focus on the present and the future?
He said that he had been fighting with Danny--had the fire demoness offered him her emblem as well? She uncurled her fingers, revealing the emblem once more.
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Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2012 6:31 pm
"Yeah, but that's if it WAS the past," Roch said. "Look, I've been doin' my best to be a good student, but I still find myself muggin' pizza boils, stealin' award winning roses, doin' graffiti murals on town walls, and all those 'hunter' problems that made the boogies spend like, a week or two watchin' our every move ain't helpin' me put the past in the past. The fact comes down to one thing, Xiu. I ain't a good guy. I probably never will be. And beyond that--"
He gave her a strange look. "Look, I know why Danny wants to give me hers. I understand that. But I got no jackin' CLUE why you would. All the s**t I've done to you, seriously, ghoul, I'm the LAST person you should give one of those. Take that--" he motioned to the emblem, "give it to one of the people you head to in the middle of a crowd. One you worry about when we're all dyin. Cuz don't lie, we both know it ain't me."
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Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2012 10:56 pm
Her lips were pursed, but she said very little. Truth be told, most of the things he had listed were news to her--she hadn't known about the mugging or the graffiti--but her expression did not change. At least, not until Roch got to his last statement--then the baku froze, her shoulders stiffening as she stared at him with wide, disbelieving eyes. There was a moment of pause, and then she bristled, suddenly looking more angry than anything.
"Roch," Though her voice was even, there was a clear strain in it that usually wasn't there, "Don't you dare imply that I would not care at all if you were dying. Nor should you imply that those who receive an emblem are the only ones who I care about. Lizzy does not have my emblem, and neither does Amphi, or Yin Cang, or Hel, or Sparrow, or half of the people that I would willingly die for."
Her voice might have grown sharper at the end. Yes, she had given her emblem to three others--Shun, Levi, and Vaith. Yes, she would throw herself into danger for them, but no, they were certainly not the only people who she cared about.
But this was silly. She shouldn't have to argue with someone to take her pin--it was supposed to be a symbol of trust, a symbol that meant that she had their back. Taking a deep breath, she picked up the pin between her index and her thumb, lifting it for the reaper to see--one more chance. "But if you're certain. The choice is yours, whatever it is." She had a feeling that she might already know what his answer was, though. He was stubborn, and she knew that--after all, she had known him for a while.
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Posted: Wed Mar 14, 2012 7:36 am
"I broke my greatest rule with you, Xiu," he said quietly, turning and looking away. "I never chase what doesn't want chased, and there I was chasing you like an idiot, when it was clear that you didn't like me like that. I dragged you around, I pushed you away, I did all sorts of s**t--and most importantly, I threatened you with a kiss," he finished, looking at her again.
"I'm sorry. I'm so jackin' sorry about that that I can't even put it in words. I would understand if you never wanted to see me again. In fact of the emblems I've gotten, or been offered, this is the one I really, seriously don't understand. Why would you still trust me with that after all the dirty s**t I've done?" He needed to hear this. If they never talked again, he needed to hear this before that happened.
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