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 Posted: Tue May 10, 2022 6:56 pm
Ingrid was out yet again, and while she hadn’t been able to talk to her sister yet, she had been thinking a lot about Ferris’ offer but… Truthfully…she couldn’t see how she would be any kind of an asset to anyone. She had no real…practice with her magic, so that was her plan for the day. Find someone to help her figure out her magic, and thankfully…there was someone nearby. Quickly, Ingrid made her way over to the long haired senshi, and for a long moment, she just stared, frowning slightly and taking in her fuku and the hair…and trying to make sense of it. Finally, she gave a hesitant smile. “...You…you’re like me, aren’t you? You’re wearing white…but your hair is…kind of insanely long…is…that’s not totally…I mean. You’re not corrupted, right?” She didn’t feel like Ferris had. There wasn’t an instinct to just…attack her, but… “...If you’re not. Can I please try my magic on you? I need to get better at this, and I can’t think of any other way to do it…so. Please?” Why would she even want to allow it after Ingrid had accused her of being a corrupted senshi, Ingrid had no idea and. “Oh…I’m Sailor Ingrid, by the way…Senshi of Holly…”
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Posted: Tue May 10, 2022 7:37 pm
Izanami had never been particularly sensitive about her hair; she took good care of it, as a civilian, of course, because it needed to be taken care of, but on the whole, it was her hair and that was it.
She hadn't considered that the fluffy cascade of it might be mistaken for something else until....well, until the strange Senshi asked about it. But--Monoceros's hair had been much longer than she remembered. Was that some sort of feature of Negaverse Senshi? She'd have to remember that.
"No, ah, my hair's just like this," Izanami said. "I've always kept it pretty long." She gave a polite smile. "I'm Sailor Izanami. It's lovely to meet you, Ingrid." She was....very pretty, Izanami noted. Not that she spent much time thinking about girls, but...well, she spent some time thinking about girls, certainly.
She looked thoughtful.
"Okay, I'd be happy for you to test your magic on me. But, ah, don't be offended--I'd rather not use mine on you, it's." Her smile got a bit grim. "I'm the Senshi of Cremation, so. You can imagine that it's not very pleasant.
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Posted: Tue May 10, 2022 8:03 pm
Ingrid nodded, flushing with some shame. “Oh…Um well! It’s very pretty! Your hair…ah…no, no that’s fine I…was hoping you wouldn’t…I…magic is scary, and the idea of cremation is doubly scary so…I’m glad that you don’t want to use yours on me…”
Terribly glad, honestly. Ferris’ had been bad enough. But the idea of just…burning…
Ingrid shuddered and then drew in a breath. “Okay! Um…” She took a few steps away from Izanami and shrugged. “...Deck the halls?”
God, she felt so stupid with her attack name, but she couldn’t deny the results as five bursts of light left her hand, looking sharp and…huh. Maybe for as stupid as it sounded…her magic just might be a little useful after all.Noir Songbird Deck the Halls! Ingrid holds out her hand and five energy holly leaves fly out at her opponent, whirling like throwing stars, they hurt when they make contact. If she manages to hit an opponent with more than three of the leaves, they can leave small cuts in their wake. The attack can go up to ten feet away from Ingrid and can be used twice per battle.
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Posted: Tue May 10, 2022 8:51 pm
Izanami reached up and fluffed her hair at the compliment, smiling fondly. It was pretty nice, and she did work hard on it.
But her magic would not make this any better, and Ingrid didn't need to suffer her spell. It was....pretty much for enemies only, Izanami figured.
She brached herself for the incoming magic, and put her arms up to protect her face--and felt a sting when the holly flew at her.
She blinked, brought her arms down, and checked--yes, there were thin cuts marking her forearms.
"Oh!" She said, much cheerier than you might expect for someone who had just been hit with painful magic. "That's incredibly useful! Have you made much use of it before? Or is this your first trial run with it?"
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Posted: Tue May 10, 2022 8:57 pm
Ingrid hesitated and then gave a little grin. “It…it’s the first time I’ve used it…I guess it’s not so bad but. The name is stupid. Like I’m an elf or something. Are you okay? I…I didn’t hurt you, did I? I didn’t mean to if that’s the case. But. It’s good to know that I’m not completely useless.”
If she did end up going with Ferris though…it was terribly good to know she would be bringing something with her.
“…You got any advice on the whole…” Ingrid gestured to the both of them, grimacing. “All of this? The magical stuff?”
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Posted: Tue May 10, 2022 9:47 pm
"The name may be stupid," Izanami said, "or may feel stupid, but I think the magic itself is quite potent." She shrugged her shoulders, briefly. "I think many aspects of this are a little silly, and that's sort of the grand tradition of magical girls, anyway. But!"
She held up her arms, to show off the little bits of damage.
"You did hurt me, and that's good. It means that if someone ever tries to hurt you, you can stop them with your magic. Defend yourself and other people. I think that makes your magic incredibly valuable." It was the same way she felt about her own, really. It hurt people, and that sucked, but sometimes people needed to hurt to be stopped from doing more harm.
Thr question about advice made her pause, and think.
"....Find allies. Obviously we have a start here, but everything is better if you can call for backup. And try not to get too entangled with people on the other side--they can make you a part of the Negaverse by force. It happened to a friend of mine." She frowned. At least, she assumed Monoceros hadn't chosen what happened to him, but maybe she was wrong...it wasn't like she knew. "And....don't hesitate. They won't. Officers have weapons that can kill you, and they can reach into your chest and pull out your soul, and if they do that, you will die. So don't be afraid to defend yourself if you have to, and do not hesitate to fight back."
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Posted: Tue May 10, 2022 9:53 pm
It all sounded like pretty sound advice, and Ingrid nodded, raising a hand to her mouth and chewing on a hangnail. “I guess that all makes sense…but. Do you really think it’s so bad with…with chaos? I…met a corrupt senshi and she was noce…and told me I could have a home there…”
She drew in a breath and looked at her new friend. Mentor? Whatever she was. “Do you think it was a lie, or simply what…she thought of as the truth? She mentioned that we lie…that we tell lies and just. Aren’t great people. I don’t know. It sounded nice when she spoke of it…”
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Posted: Tue May 10, 2022 9:56 pm
Izanami inhaled. Ah, this was...dangerous, especially since she was dealing with the power of primacy. Clearly, Ingrid had heard from the other side first--and it had made an impression on her.
"I think," Izanami said, "that your corrupt friend might very well believe that. I think that the Negaverse must believe themselves to be correct--no one imagines themself as the villain in their own story. But."
She let out a breath.
"A Negaverse General tried to kill me before I even Awakened. Put her hand in my chest and intended to take my starseed, my soul, for no reason other than that she could. The Negaverse drains energy from innocent people, kills them, does horrible things--and all of that, to them, I am sure, is justified. But I do not think I can imagine myself accepting those justifications. If it is different for you, then it is different for you, but that is how I feel."
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Posted: Wed May 11, 2022 7:53 am
Ingrid nodded, turning the words over in her mind for a few minutes before speaking again. “...Do you think they’re all like that? Or do you think it varies from person to person? Is there a reason why they’re trying to take…energy and…and souls? It sounds so extreme when you put it that way but.”
She sighed and shrugged. “...It sounded so nice when Ferris spoke of it. Like I could be happy and she would protect me. Which…is supid. I have such a big family. But…I don’t know. The way she spoke made me want it but. You’re putting a whole other light on things…I just. Wish I could know the truth, you know?”
Not that Ingrid had any doubts that Izanami spoke the truth, of course she did but…
“...I wish there was like…I don’t know. Some kind of unbiased person to talk to? But I seriously doubt that exists.”
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Posted: Wed May 11, 2022 2:44 pm
"I think that it very likely does vary from person to person," Izanami said, "but from everything I understand, even if an individual does not wish to be a part of the bad parts of the Negaverse, it's....systemic." She sighed. "I met a Sailor Encke, who has been in this war for over a decade--and the tales he had to tell were awful. An entire school set up to experiment on the students. A gala set as a trap to kidnap and torture people. So much pain, and terror, and fear--and all of it sown by one group of people."
She shook her head.
"I don't know that there's a third party you could speak to, either. I wish there was; I think that sort of perspective would be very valuable." Perhaps the aliens that Encke had mentioned? It sounded as if their relationship to both sides was quite complicated, but they were also recent arrivals...
"There are aliens, apparently--actual aliens, who came here from another planet--and they might have interesting thoughts. I've never met one, myself, but I think it would be quite valuable."
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Posted: Wed May 11, 2022 2:51 pm
At that information, Ingrid felt her mouth hang open in surprise. “Wait…what? You’re saying that there’s aliens now? That’s…that’s a little too much…”
She rubbed the bridge of her nose and gave a laugh that sounded only slightly hysterical. “...Sometimes I think it would be best just to leave this city all together and…I don’t know. Be a hermit up in a cave somewhere. There shouldn’t be aliens in caves…”
She hesitated and managed to flash a rather convincing smile. “Can…we hang out sometime do you think? I would like some friends who are involved in all of this…and you’re really nicce, Izanami.”
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Posted: Wed May 11, 2022 3:17 pm
"I know," Izanami sighed. "It's....a lot." Everything about this was a lot. "If I didn't have so much here, I would genuinely consider running back to my family in Tokyo and staying there." But that would mean pulling Himiko out of school to take her little sister, because she would not leave her to the vagaries of their parents. Transferring her law degree, getting a new job, many, many things, and also her father's rage would chase her, undoubtedly.
Not a viable plan.
And, anyway, Kirika Gozen was not one to run from responsibility.
"I would very much like to hang out, though," she agreed, smiling. "We can register each other as contacts!" She produced her Senshi phone, holding it up to register Ingrid.
It was good, to see her contacts page getting more filled out.
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Posted: Wed May 11, 2022 3:38 pm
Ingrid felt…a little better knowing that now she had an actual friend who wanted to be friends and did the same in her own senshi phone. “I’ll…be in contact, okay? I’m going to go home and think some more…maybe drink some chocolate milk, but I hope that I get to see you soon.”
…It would be nice, she was sure.
But now…
Now the chocolate milk was calling her, and who was she to disobey?
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