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 Posted: Fri Feb 07, 2014 10:12 pm
This wasn't necessarily her usualy spot, Sailor Canopus had to admit. Though a young teen she may be, she never found much joy in fancy things like electronics or the new age technology. It wasn't that she was an old codger at heart and shared little interest in them, and it wasn't that she didn't know how to use the devices. She simply had little use for the bulk of it. Cellphones, iPads, mp3 players, all things that Canopus never owned and had no intention of owning unless it became absolutely necessary. The cellphone she did have was primitive by today's standards and was on loan by one of the sisters, but it seldom went used. Canopus understood the value of such devices and the need to stay up to date with technology, but what she didn't understand was other's complete and utter fascination with them.
One such fascination was video games, and the fact that she now surrounded herself by machines with bright, flashing lights and audio bites repeating themselves over and over again in a monotonous pattern made her feel a little overwhelmed. She didn't hate technology. She didn't hate video games. She simply... didn't understand them nor the constant attention it would receive, especially when other, more important things could be accomplished instead. So much money was invested in these things, and yet, they could not spare a dime to the poor homeless man that made his stay just across the street?
It left her bitter, but thus far, there were few around to express such irritation, and perhaps that was for the best. It took much to get under Canopus' skin, and what did agitate her, she did her best to hide it. Far be it from her to complain when there were others out there that had it much, much worse than her. If anything, she should have considered herself fortunate, as she was born in an age brimming with such advanced technologies and knowledge, even if it was put to horrible use. Just because she didn't like or understand the deep rooted love and dependency on it did not make it right for her to judge so harshly, she told herself.
So, she swallowed whatever negative thoughts she might have had and made her way through the arcade floor, looking for someone that would be willing to offer her court a donation or two. If they could not spare a quarter in their pocket to the needy, then perhaps they would be more willing to part with some of that pent up energy instead? It was worth a shot.Carneli I'm sorry this took so long! >_<
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Posted: Thu Feb 13, 2014 8:58 pm
In the low light and buzzing activity of the arcade, Zippeite found he actually fit in here powered better than he did most places, unpowered or not. Acanthite might've shaken her head and how un-civilian he looked when they ate at the cafe, but here he was just a kid in a glowing hoody who looked tricked out for laser tag.
When it got crowded it was one of the rare successful energy farms he had, and tonight he showed up because he definitely needed that. The seventeen year old was sporting a bruise on his cheek barely hidden by the growing out, shaggy mop of hair and he kept shifting his hood up and down before finally leaving it down in quiet defeat that it didn't help any.
He was just going to slip in and do some covert harvesting for a little self validation and then go... somewhere. Probably definitely not home.
But he was distracted when he felt another presence here. Senshi. Not Nega and not White Moon It had been a while since he was in the vicinity of a mirror senshi, but he found himself approaching Canopus with a firm tap on the shoulder.
"What are you doing here?"
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Posted: Sat Feb 15, 2014 12:40 pm
With the chorus of loud music from the various arcade machines, it was impossible to hear when someone was approaching from behind, and Canopus, only a month into her life as a senshi, was still getting used to the ability to sense the presence of others. She felt the hair on the back of her neck start to rise, but that was hardly a sufficient enough warning that someone was about to touch her. When a hand came to tap her shoulder, she couldn't help but let out a surprised yelp, spinning around quickly and surprised in herself for not immediately raising a hand in self defense, even if she wasn't sure what stopped her.
Perhaps because she recognized the Chaos order that crept up on her to be that of the Negaverse? Or perhaps she was still simply too meek to strike against someone else? Regardless, the moment her muscles unlocked, she took a step back, not really out of fear but out of respect for the Negaverse officer that questioned her. The Negaverse might not have considered them to be allies anymore, but there was no reason to fear their officers, at least in Canopus's limited experience. "I'm sorry... I didn't see you here. I'm here to see if I can collect some donations for my court, but... if this is your territory, then I'll leave. I'm sor-"
She cut herself off when she looked up at his face, and even in this low lit area with multicolored, flashing and terribly distracting lights, she could see what looked to be a discoloration on the officer's cheek. Was it a birthmark? No, it was a bruise, and immediately she assumed the worst. "Oh heavens, your cheek! Are you alright? Is there anything I can do to help? Should... should I get you some ice?"
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Posted: Sun Mar 16, 2014 5:34 pm
Zippeite's eyes narrowed and his head twitched forward a bit. There was a bit of a stunted silence where he appeared to be scowling at her, but in a moment it became apparent he couldn't actually make out all of what she said.
Bits and pieces of the sentences, but the only thing that came through entirely clearly was when she mentioned his cheek and asked if he was alright. That seemed to soften his expression into embarrassment and a hand instinctively came up to futilely attempt to hide it.
The stifling awkwardness seemed to last longer than it would've liked it to before he jerked a head towards a back exit that led to an alleyway outside in a silent invitation. He even managed enough consideration to hold the door for her.
Once outside, he notably tried but couldn't quite seem to muster up the hostility he had approached her with, and instead looked uncomfortable and out of place as he seemed to continually be looking to the side and ever so slightly avoiding direct eye contact with her.
"I'm sorry, did you say donations?" He asked, sounding more baffled than he meant to as he purposely skirted the topic of his bruise and her offer to assist.
"Is that what your court calls energy gathering these days?"
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Posted: Sun Mar 23, 2014 6:05 pm
She had noticed his scowl and feared she may have said something wrong, but she held her tongue, not wanting to jump to conclusions. Maybe he was mad at her, or maybe he didn’t hear her. She wasn’t sure what she had done to make this Negaverse captain upset with her, though she seemed to notice that the Negaverse officers as of late did not seem all too thrilled to see her. Maybe the history behind their factions was far more dark and grisly than she had realized?
He appeared self conscious about the bruise on his cheek and the way he lifted his hand to try and hide to made her regret bringing it up. Old fight, or was there something else? She tried not to pry too deep, but she couldn’t help herself. She wanted to know more, about him, about the Negaverse, about everything. She wanted to understand everything, like the jerking of his head. Was that an indication that he wanted to leave? She took it that way, and she followed him without question, thanking him softly when he held the door open for her. She noticed that something changed about his demeanor, but it wasn’t exactly an unpleasant one, so Canopus didn’t mind. He seemed more shy now, than hostile, and that was a better feeling for her in the long run, even if it could have all been a ruse for her to drop her guard. This one didn’t seem like the type to hurt her, or so she thought...
“No, I think other members of my court are more open about it,” Canopus said, noting that he was purposefully avoiding talking about the bruise on his cheek but not calling him out on that yet. It was really none of her busy, but still, if there was something she could do to help, she’d at least try. For now, she was willing to let it go, offering an explanation to his question without hesitation. “However, I chose to call it donations because it had a more positive connotation to it and would make the donors more acceptable to the idea. I suppose it’s like the difference between a volunteer at the Salvation Army and a mugger… why force something you need when you can ask politely and avoid conflict?”
Ever curious about the other side, she asked a question of her own. “I take it that the Negaverse is a little more direct in their methods, then? Does that work?”
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Posted: Sat Mar 29, 2014 2:55 pm
Zippeite's hostility was a constantly fluctuating thing. Senshi were a hard subject for him and someone as non-threatening and well meaning as Canopus put things into a further gray area that made him shift uncomfortably with now solid foundation to guide his actions.
"My way is more direct, yeah," Direct in that it was far from harmless and more creepy and invasive and sometimes deadly. Energy gathering with harmlessness was not his forte. "I guess."
He tugged on the hooded collar of his uniform in clear discomfort.
"I guess I've just never heard of it being done that way. Or called that. It's one way to go about it, I guess." He was so, so bad at this social interaction thing and he projected his own discomfort onto her. Whether it was accurate or not, he suddenly felt actual guilt for dragging her out of the crowd to talk to him, and no longer felt a desire to impose an intimidating presence on her. He had felt bad that he ever had.
"It doesn't always work. I guess. It depends on your skill level. You can go back to it, if you want. I can hunt somewhere else."
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Posted: Sun Apr 06, 2014 1:10 pm
His discomfort was clear to see, and while normal people may have suspected they had done something wrong or have been the source of their discomfort, Canopus found herself wanting to dig a little deeper. Was she really causing him such much distress, or was it something deeper than that? She should have left it alone and not pick at it, but she simply couldn’t help herself. What if it was something she could help with? “Both methods are viable, I suppose. You might get more success than I would with your direct method than with mine… but then again, I don’t think we have much of a quota to fill. You might, though…”
As curious as she was to know if she was the cause of his distress, she made sure to keep some distance intact. That was something she wasn’t willing to intrude upon, both out of fear of retaliation and, of course, respect for the Negaverse officer. They may not have been allies anymore, but she didn’t feel they were enemies either, and all living creatures deserved respect. A naive thought, perhaps, but thus far nothing had happened to deter her from that thought. She listened to him talk, keeping her hands to herself and doing her best not to fidget, if that may have added to the anxiety she saw in him. Maybe she should have to see just how deep it went, but as curious as she was, she didn’t wish to agitate the situation.
“Oh, you don’t have to go. I think you were here first anyway, and besides, you may have more need of the energy than I do,” Canopus said, finally showing some of her own unease when he suggested he’d leave. Was that what all of this was about? Was she intruding on his territory? Would he get into trouble with his superior officers if he gave up his hunting grounds to a Mirror Senshi? “I’m sorry for intruding on your turf, officer. It was never my intention on displacing you, so I’ll go ahead and leave now. I wish you happy hunting tonight!”
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Posted: Sat Apr 12, 2014 11:38 am
Zippeite's mouth visibly twisted when she said he might get more success because he definitely didn't. More often than not he accidentally killed his target trying to fight or subdue them and didn't get nearly the energy gain he was hoping for.
With her nonthreatening demeanor, her energy yield was probably far and away from his own.
"Yeah, we have quotas," He croaked out flatly with an awkward expression to match the flub.
But she was leaving, and giving up her endeavor for him, and he felt bowled over by a rarely felt and almost foreign feeling he had almost forgotten about. Zippeite didn't usually feel guilt, he didn't really know how to handle it, but for some reason Canopus was pushing the right buttons and his discomfort was noticeable.
One thing he knew for sure, though, was that it was only going to be worse if he let her leave and give up on his account.
"Ah! Ha, wait," He said after some hesitation, and even reached out to grab her arm to stop her before he realized he had broken the physical contact barrier and retracted it, standing stiffly and holding his arms behind his back as he went back to making his startled frog face. "I mean-- whoops, sorry."
After a second to recover from his own action, he cleared his throat.
"I'm not really in any state to be hunting," He admitted. He didn't want to go home, so hunting seemed to be the only viable way to escape his toxic home life. But that didn't change the fact that he had gotten in several fights that went badly lately, and the visible and not-so-visible bruises were still sore.
"You should go back to looking for donations. I won't bother you, I promise."
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Posted: Wed Apr 16, 2014 9:06 am
She mused at the idea of having a quota. She didn't mean to judge him or his organization so harshly for it, but from what she was told, the Negaverse was far more strict, far more militaristic in their approach, far different from their own. She wasn't even sure if they were collecting energy for the same goal or purpose anymore, but she wasn't about to question the way his organization ran things. Maybe that was why their factions' relationship suffered? It was something worth thinking about at a later time, nevertheless.
She was genuinely surprised when he called her back and she was certain she did a terrible job of hiding this, but it wasn't an unpleasant kind of surprise. She saw movement from the corner of her eyes and half wondered if that strange 'dance' he did with his hands was because he had tried to grab her but retracted at the last minute. That only made her even more curious about this officer, and she didn't bother to hide her interest in him as she gave him a small smile in hopes of calming him down. "It's alright... you didn't do anything to apologize for, I don't think?"
She just welcomed company and the chance to know more about the world and people around her. She listened to him with great thought and consideration, despite her smile, and while she was happy that he finally seemed to be opening up to her, what she was hearing wasn't quite a happy story. She wanted to look closer at his face to try and confirm her suspicions, but that'd be too forward and rude, not to mention unfair to the captain. Whatever bothered him needed to be handled with tact, and Canopus was willing to take her time with it. Maybe he wasn't part of her court, but he was a human being, and maybe with some time and effort, a friend? "I appreciate it. Would you like to accompany me? Maybe you'll like this method and would like to use it later on in your missions? It might make things easier for you..."
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Posted: Sat May 10, 2014 9:01 pm
Zippeite glanced at her and his discomfort seemed ease ever so slightly but it was still present. Still the thought of this gentle girl going back into the general chaos of the arcade crowd or any other cluster of civilians to meekly ask for donations managed to ignite some weird tinge of worry in his chest.
He reasoned out accepting her invitation would be mutually beneficial for the both of them, if only because the Negaverse was more positively known among the civilian populace than anyone in a sailor collar, and he had a weapon.
A very big weapon.
"Okay," He finally said with a small nod of his head. He reached one gloved hand up to run his fingers through his hair and push back the shaggy indigo strands and bent the other around to offer her his elbow.
"Let's see your way."
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Posted: Sun May 11, 2014 11:47 am
It took much effort for her not to beam when he agreed to accompany her. Not only did she welcome the company, but she felt safer when there was someone else to accompany her. If anything went awry, she felt better knowing that there was at least someone there to pull her out or salvage the situation. Of course, that was her making an assumption that he’d come to her rescue if things went south, but she would get no one if she didn’t have faith in others, she reminded herself.
“Thank you… I appreciate it,” Canopus said, watching as he brushed some of his hair away from his face, and it was this notion that she seemed to get a better look at his face. Initially she liked what she saw- he was rather beautiful when half his face wasn’t covered with shadow, but it was hard to admire that beauty when she noticed the bruise on his cheek, and she couldn’t help but bring her violet gaze to it. Mentally, she debated bringing the topic up, but he appeared to be hiding it for so long… would it have been rude to bring it up?
He held his elbow out to her in a universal ‘shall we’ motion and any chance Canopus had to bring up the bruise was forced to the back of her mind. She rationalized that once they were done, she’d ask, and if he wanted to talk about it after, then that’d be fine with her. Or it would ruin the moment and he’d lock himself away… it was too early to tell at this point. She accepted the elbow with a silent nod and walked back into arcade. She wasn’t completely prepared for the loud music, but with Zippeite there, she’d endure.
By the time they returned, there was a group at the Dance Dance Revolution pad, two already occupying the dance pads while three others watched from the sides. Canopus wasted no time, approaching them and clearing her throat to catch their attention though uncertain if she’d succeed with the loud music and stomping of feet. That poor machine!
“Excuse me, but can I have a moment of your time?”
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Posted: Sat May 31, 2014 1:22 pm
Zippeite had seen enough charity organizations and churches asking for donations that he had come to expect adverse reactions. The eye rolling, the sudden interest in other things, the total lack of interest. While a few people in the group gave Canopus their attention, the few that didn’t had him prickly at the very sight of them.
He didn’t focus on the few people who obliged her, he was too busy being mad at the ones who weren’t to even notice them.
“Hey,” He barked, getting a few scowls, “You wanna listen up or what?”
It didn’t help, in fact it seemed to raise the hostility a bit and caused a few people to walk away. Suddenly he was uneasy. He’d done it wrong, hadn’t he? And he was just slowing her down. Guilt washed over his expression and he resembled something like a kicked puppy, tugging on his collar and wondering if it had always been that tight and uncomfortable.
“I--... u-uh…” He made a few mumbled stammers he wasn’t she she could even hear under the commotion of the arcade before he cleared his throat and gestured to the few people still looking to her to continue. “I mean, um. Go on.”
He was looking at the floor with uncertainty now, but waved a stiff arm in front of him in an urging motion. She would have to do the talking, he would only make it worse.
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Posted: Fri Jun 06, 2014 6:57 pm
She hadn't expected much of a turn out and the fact that she even managed to get a few people's attention was more than enough to please her. There would both those that would refuse, of course, but that was their right to do so and she was in no condition to argue with them nor force it upon them. She may have had the power to do so, but the idea of hurting them simply did not settle well with her. She was surprised when two of them actually seemed to be considering it, but not as surprised as when Zippeite suddenly rose his voice and addressed the rude ones that she had been trying to ignore.
It certainly didn't have the effect that either of them wanted, and Canopus watched in silence as the bulk of the crowd had grumbled and turned away to leave. She could have tried to go after them and try her hand at calming the situation, but she had a feeling that doing so would have only made the situation worse. No, they were gone, and there was no getting them back without the use of force. To Canopus, they might as well have not been there at all. She should have been really angry with the captain, and she was, but only a little. When she glanced back at him, she could tell that he was remorseful, and that'd have to do for now.
"I'm sorry about that," Canopus said, apologizing to the few that stayed, and she carried on, summoning her Mirror Wraith. It was still in its transparent state and those that stayed only knew it was there when it seemed to distort the world immediately around its form. There were surprises expressions all around, but thus far none thought to leave, and Canopus took advantage of that, holding it close for them to see. "I'm Canopus, senshi of the Dark Mirror Court, and this is my friend, and we were wondering if any of you would be willing to donate some energy for our cause. Just a little energy, and it won't hurt at all. Would anyone like to donate any?"
There was some hesitation from the small crowd, and already there were others already looking to follow the example from the more rude ones from earlier. Canopus glanced back at Zippeite and gave a small, nervous shrug of her own, before muttering. "Guess I'm not very good at my own method after all..."
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