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 Posted: Wed Jun 15, 2022 5:13 pm
If Sybil and Cherry were going to insist that Reiki take at least one night per week to himself to not host or perform, and ideally to not be in the vicinity of Scandals at all, then he saw no reason not to use that night for patrolling.… Looking for trouble, in so many words. Not going out of his way to start fights or anything, but still, going and looking for something on which to cut his magical girl teeth. As he’d figured out while talking to Kerberos during last week’s night off, he was probably expecting too much of himself after only three (nearly four, now!) weeks as a senshi, not least since he’d spent most of those three weeks……talking to people instead of using his magic for anything.
For all the good that would really accomplish, when apparently, all his magic did was make Kerberos not want to be around him anymore. And after he put in all that work to make me think someone like him would really care about someone like me.… Shame. If he’d kept pushing it, I probably would’ve taken him up on a visit to his planet.… Would’ve been nice to see something sweet like his squirrel-foxes. No use dwelling on the spilt milk and broken crayons, though, Reiki thought as he hopped around roofs near the Japanese market where he liked to get his sashimi-grade salmon. Whatever was twisted, or broken, or just plain wrong with his magic, it wouldn’t get better if he sat around, feeling sorry for himself. Nothing ever did.
Anyway, maybe it was a situation like Haruhi’s new senshi outfit, where ne hated it right now but as ne got stronger, the outfit would grow, and change, and hopefully become something that didn’t, from the sound of things, leave Haruhi with a massive pile of dysphoric feelings. Maybe training up his magic would help Reiki do more than just……repel people who, until he got the attack off, had seemed like they might actually want to get to know him.
Tonight, it wasn’t a person or their aura that stopped Reiki and diverted him; it was a splotch of gray. From the roof of a used bookstore, he would’ve sworn that it looked like someone had given reality a grayscale paint-job, right in the middle of a city park. Frowning deeply, Reiki hopped down into an alley and ventured closer.… God, this park smelled like a ******** ashtray, or at least it did around the gray spot. Had there been a smokers’ convention around here? Some gathering of them big enough to cancel how being outside should’ve made it harder for that atrocious smell to linger?
And it felt……strange. Reiki couldn’t quite say why. But his skin crawled as he paced around the perimeter of the gray splotch, drinking in the details: dead trees like desiccated bone under the desert sun, grass looking like it had been made from the contents of an ashtray, dandelions withered up and curling in on themselves like the architecture in a Tim Burton movie.…… And Reiki couldn’t shake the feeling, with every rustle of the wind through the branches, like somebody was watching him.
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Posted: Wed Jun 15, 2022 9:26 pm
Fang had wandered over to the park when he'd heard of the dead spots on the television thingie (strange magic). He didn't quite understand it, but he knew it was bad. Bad bad. He had to try and figure this out. So he followed the horrible smell that made his face screw up until he found a spot—and someone along with it. Someone Chaos. He growled lowly on instinct, arms twitching because he wanted to (attack attack bite bite scream and howl and claw), but he waited. It didn't seem like this man was causing the spot, so maybe it wasn't a Chaos thing. At least, not consciously... Shadows twitched in the corner of his eye in the spot and he hissed. Snakes? Something... something evil. "Spots bad," he said, dropping from the tree near Reiki. "See shadows? Snakey... monstery..." If the senshi reacted to attack Fang, he wouldn't hesitate to throw himself at the other. Chaos was still Chaos, but if this was a problem everyone had to fight, he would stand by their side. Reluctantly.
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Posted: Wed Jun 15, 2022 9:52 pm
Reiki felt the approach of a White Moon aura coming up behind him—and alas, it wasn’t powerful enough to be Kerberos—but……he was minding his own business. Definitely not draining anything from anybody. If anyone thought he was responsible for the dead spot, then they’d be giving him way too much credit (and hopefully, their aura sense would tell them so).
And then, there was a growl.…and Reiki turned to find himself blinking at……? He had no idea how to describe the newcomer, honestly. Some kind of werewolf-looking guy? Because……why the ******** not, apparently. This may as well happen.
“You’re not from around here, are you,” he said before he could stop himself. “I mean—not from Earth here? …Because if you’re not? It’s okay, I promise.… I’ve met another senshi from way, way off-planet before.” None of which actually answered Sailor Bargain Bin Derek Hale’s question……but to do that, Reiki needed to take a few deep breaths and focus. “…I haven’t seen any snakey monsters, no? But I’ve had the feeling like someone’s watching me, and it definitely wasn’t coming from you. Didn’t feel like a White Moon senshi aura, y’know?
“…I’m Murikabushi, by the way,” he added. “Sailor Murikabushi. And if it makes you feel any better about being around a Chaos-rat, I’m not with the Negaverse or whoever’s in charge of it. The Dark Mirror Court……we’re our own thing.”
He didn’t know that it would make Sailor Alexa, Play “Howl” By Florence And The Machine feel any better……but maybe it would? At least, Daphne had seemed to feel some kind of less negative way about Reiki not being Negaverse, though……maybe that was just because he didn’t try to hit her or anything.
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Posted: Wed Jun 15, 2022 10:14 pm
Fang's ears twitched irritably. Yes, yes, he wasn't from here, he was already sick to death of people reacting strongly to him in a way that made him feel bad and want to (run run hide not safe not safe) but he held his ground, frowning until the senshi continued with having met another off-planet senshi, which made him relax a little. So he wasn't being judged. "Sailor Fang," he responded, taking a deep breath. "Muri... ka......" No, Fang wasn't even going to embarrass himself this time. If he couldn't get it out, he wasn't going to get frustrated and force it and hurt his throat. "Muri think other watches.... Fang see shadows..." He rubbed his chin, frowning at the spot. "Something.... is there. Maybe...world collide? No, not world, what word... dimma- EHN-shun?" He coughed a little on the word, nearly choking on it, and forced himself to take a deep breath again, followed by another, letting his throat relax and clear up before he could speak again. "Know not Dark Mirror. Just Negaverse. Evil," he scowled, "No like Chaos. But... if no kill, then... okay." His throat burned and he coughed again, eyes watering. He hated this. So much talking, always necessary! Home was never so complicated. The villagers knew who he was and what he needed all the time without speaking too much.
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Posted: Wed Jun 15, 2022 10:41 pm
“Yeah, ‘Muri’ works. No need to stress yourself out with the whole thing. And I’m with you about the Negaverse, Fang.” Reiki shivered slightly, despite the heat, thinking of all the things he’d learned about the Negaverse in the past month.… No doubt, he wasn’t even scratching the surface of how terrible the Negaverse was or every horrible thing they could do to people, and it was still more than enough.… Forcing Toráin and Valjean to join them. Erasing everything about who they were. Hurting them until they thought it was okay and the right thing. Locking Kerberos away to endure alcoholic detox, alone.…
With a soft sigh, Reiki folded his hands together in front of himself. He left them where Fang could (hopefully) see them and (hopefully) understand that Reiki didn’t have any untoward intentions. Which felt especially necessary as he moved closer to Fang. “The Negaverse has hurt people I care about, too.” Well, one friend, one guy who maybe could’ve been a friend, and one guy I’d probably let ******** me despite my objections to his personality because, unfortunately, he’s very hot and I’m very gay. “So…I’m Chaos? But I promise: I’m not with them, and I don’t want to hurt you.”
Which still left the matter of the dead zone… “But this…it could be something about dimensions, maybe? I don’t really know enough to say…and two of the people I can think of who might…? I don’t know for sure if they’d know either, and I don’t know how to contact one of them. Unless…” Idly humming ‘Once Upon A Dream,’ Reiki reached into his subspace and pulled out his compact. Holding it out for Fang to see, he asked, “Does your side have something like these? I…I don’t know if Kerberos would want to see me, but…if you have something that can call other White Moon senshi? He might know something about this.”
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Posted: Wed Jun 15, 2022 11:17 pm
Fang's tail, the traitorous b*****d, wagged slightly when Murikabushi told him he wasn't going to hurt him. Hearing that... was nice. Even if he still wasn't completely sure he was safe, it felt... comforting. "Ick. Fang has phone but it dumb," he huffed, crossing his arms and distinctly! not! pouting! "No buttons! Call it smart, but it dumb. No understand how Fang speak. Too flat. Stupid phone. Stupid stupid." Still, he pulled it out, showing it to Murikabushi. "Have only few friends, but they sleep right now. Busy busy. No call," he said, putting it back in his subspace. He wouldn't disturb the people who currently housed him. He'd ask when they were awake. "Maybe... Hm, Slash!" Hand extended, he clawed at the air above the dead spot on the ground with just the magic, keeping his hand carefully out of the zone. Nothing appeared to happen and he whined. amorremanet Fang swipes once at his target, and the ghostly paw of a Chrysocyon with claws extended springs forth, causing the appearance and sensation of shallow scratches that burn slightly if it hits. This lasts for about thirty seconds, has three uses, and has a range of ten feet. This can tear through clothes or can cause lasting damage at player discretion.
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Posted: Wed Jun 15, 2022 11:48 pm
Whatever sort of alien Fang was, Reiki felt quite certain that he was in the presence of the single most adorable being he had ever met in his life. He didn’t want to giggle or make Fang feel bad—indeed, it took Herculean effort to keep his expression gentle and sympathetic—but……watching him pout over the frustration of working with his smartphone was just. so. cute.
“You’re a very considerate friend,” Reiki agreed, letting himself give Fang a small smile, “letting them sleep.”
The pleasantness of that moment made the next hit that much harder.
While Fang saw nothing happen, Reiki snapped to attention. There! Right there! Something snakey, in the corner of his eye! He whipped around, trying to follow it, but everywhere he turned, he got there too slow. Whatever this serpentine monster was, it kept moving. ******** was it? s**t, did Reiki need to get ahead of this thing, the way Yuki always said about shooting the last little ship in Space Invaders?
……Actually.
Maybe that wasn’t a bad idea—if he could make it work.
Deep breaths. Focusing. Reiki tried to recall how he’d felt before making the attack work with Kerberos. How he’d felt liberated, after admitting to all the feelings he carried around and the stress he’d been putting on himself. He could do this—he knew he could! And he had to do it. So Fang could get home to his friends.
Reaching out, Reiki yanked down on an invisible string. As he whipped to where he felt the snake-thing moving, feeling the rush of power swelling within him, he snapped, “Gnawing Hunger!”genovianprince Extending an arm, Murikabushi bends his wrist back; as he calls the name of his attack, he curls his fingers into a fist, then jerks his hand down as if tugging a cord. Enemies within 10 feet of him begin to feel a powerful hunger or sense of craving, one they feel cannot be sated, and yet, they are compelled to try. This craving can be for anything—food, drink, affection/intimacy, alcohol or narcotics, the answers to the math homework, etc.—but it is quite distracting. This spell lasts for 25 seconds, and Murikabushi can use it three times per battle. And today on Late Bloomer Side-Effects: instead of failing to go off, Murikabushi’s attack goes off but hits everyone within ten feet of him indiscriminately, without regard for enemy vs. ally/friend vs. “not really either, but we are currently working together.”
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Posted: Thu Jun 16, 2022 12:05 am
Fang approved of Murikabushi using his own magic on the spot for only the moment that he heard the other speaking the spell. Because as soon as the last syllable dropped from Murikabushi's lips, he was hit by the radius, and dropped to his knees immediately with a pained howl, clutching at his stomach, sweating, panting, howling in pain. HUNGRY HUNGRY HUNGRY HUNGRY aching hunger ache ache no food can't find no help no food hungry hungry hurting aching hurt p a i n food please food f ind food not enough hunger worse H U N G R Y. He was back on his dying, no, dead planet, starving eternally, unable to die, unwilling to die, really, but not good at living, not a good Senshi, anyway, and s t a r v i n g to d e a t h.
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Posted: Thu Jun 16, 2022 1:54 am
The pained howl jerked Reiki straight down from the cloud of self-satisfaction and the haze of hoping that the attack did something to snake monsters, even if it hadn’t done to Kerberos. This was…… Fang was on his knees.…… Clearly in pain.…… But—but this made no sense? Reiki’s attack didn’t even do anything to Kerberos. It only hurt youma and possibly shadowy snake monsters, right? That was the best explanation for how Kerberos reacted……wasn’t it?
Except the evidence that no, no, Reiki had been wrong about this? Currently knelt on the ground in front of him—and ********, no time for hand-wringing or semantic bullshit. Fang needed help.
“Hey… Hey, Fang, it—it’s okay, you’re not…” As he dropped to his own knees, Reiki couldn’t make himself say the last part of what he’d planned: you’re not in any danger. ********, if Reiki’s attack had done this, then how could he even remotely promise Fang something like that? But……having done this made the cleanup job Reiki’s responsibility, so he went on, “You’re not alone. I—I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to hit you with that, but……what’s going on? How do you feel? Where does it hurt?”
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Posted: Thu Jun 16, 2022 10:05 am
Someone-- someone was here. Comforting him. He wasn't alone? Not alone? He was safe? Maybe? What if he was just so hungry he was making things up again? He looked up into Murikabushi's eyes, seeing the concern, and whinesd distressedly. "Stomach," he gasped, "So hungry... dying. Dying on Fang again. No foooood..." The last word turned into a howl of pain and he spasmed, falling forward onto his hands. And then, just as suddenly, the intense pain stopped. He was definitely still very hungry, but it felt... more normal? Less like death. More like it had just been six hours since he last ate something more than a salad. He looked up again and realized he was crying when he couldn't see Murikabushi clearly. "H-Hungry?"
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Posted: Thu Jun 16, 2022 10:39 am
“No…no, you’re not dying,” Reiki told Fang gently, without even needing to think about it. “You’re not dying. I’m not gonna let you die. Whatever you need, I’m gonna help you, okay?” It was only right. Reiki had caused poor Fang’s distress with his attack, so it was his responsibility to make sure that it got better. To do something to help make it better.
Taking a deep breath, Reiki looked up and scanned some of the nearby shops. If Fang was hungry, then he needed food.… Surely, Reiki could find him something around here. “Okay, I… I can’t power down in front of you? But…there are places to get food around here. So just…what do you like to eat? If you stay right here, I’ll go power down in one of those alleys over there, and find somewhere I can get you food. Then, I’ll bring it right back.”
Trying to look Fang right in the eye, to hopefully emphasize that he meant everything earnestly, Murikabushi added, “I promise I’ll come back.”
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Posted: Thu Jun 16, 2022 9:40 pm
Fang nodded. "I wait. Need... need to eat," he said despairingly, letting himself flop over to the ground as Muri rushed off. He took slow, deep breaths, curled up on the ground and clutching at his stomach. The hunger he felt was so strange... unyielding... even if the magic had stopped having an effect, he was... Still affected. He didn't understand. So wrapped up in himself, he forgot what he was waiting for, and upon hearing the hurried footsteps rushing toward him, the Chaos signature at the edge of his aura sense, he lurched up and hissed out his spell. " Slash!" His hand curled towards Murikabushi, eyes unseeing the tentative friend he'd just made, only seeing the past and the monsters within.
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Posted: Thu Jun 16, 2022 10:07 pm
One good thing about hunger, Reiki supposed: the ensuing lethargy made aiming considerably more difficult. Not that dodging Fang’s attack really made him feel any better. Yes, it meant that he hadn’t gotten hit, but……as he slowed his pace, approaching Fang more cautiously, all Reiki felt was godawful for having put Fang in this position in the first place.
“Hey?” He ventured, keeping his voice gentle and soft. “No monsters or anything, okay? It’s just me. Just Muri.… With the food I promised you? So you can eat?”
By way of illustrating that—hopefully letting Fang see that he was safe—Reiki crouched down and opened one of the Styrofoam boxes he had in hand. In it sat a pair of grilled cheese sandwiches, made on Texas toast with enough cheese to match a half-pound burger patty for thickness. (At least, the menu at the all-night bodega/sandwich shop he’d ducked into had promised that and Reiki didn’t particularly care to question it.) Giving Fang a hopeful look, he nudged the container toward him and waited.
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Posted: Thu Jun 16, 2022 11:31 pm
Fang's ears slowly unpinned as he sniffed the air and smelled the food. No, not just food. Cheese. He scrambled forward weakly on all fours, tail wagging as he got close and grabbed at the container, any form of manners completely nonexistent. He very nearly just shoved his face into the sandwiches, but at the last moment realized he was probably covered in sweat and dirt and tears, and figured on least just using his hands, and snatched up one of the sandwiches, taking a large bite and just swallowing without chewing. "Cheeeeeeese!" he said approvingly, tail thumping against the ground.
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Posted: Thu Jun 16, 2022 11:54 pm
Settling on the ground beside Fang, Reiki gave him a small, easy smile. “I thought you might like that.… I know you’re a person, not a dog, but…” His eyes drifted up to Fang’s ears, and then to his thumping tail. “You do have some traits? And……my dog at home? She loves cheese.… I’m just sorry my godfather’s not here, so he can’t make you his macaroni and cheese. He’s the best at making it out of everyone—at least, everyone I’ve ever tried.”
Watching Fang eat too closely, though, made Reiki start feeling a little queasy.… Ugh, that was never a good sign, him feeling squiffy just from watching other people eat. Still, it was easy enough to just look up at the city lights, or across the green at a row of buildings, or over at the still-unexplained dead spot.… Reiki would have to tell Levi about that, and honestly, maybe even Kerberos, if Kerberos was even willing to be around him anymore. Surely, for something as probably-a-big-deal as this dead zone, right? It wasn’t Chaos, and Fang attacking it had made Reiki start seeing things and attacking Fang, which all felt like a pretty big deal, so someone like Kerberos would want to know about it, right?
The obvious answer was “yes.” Reiki couldn’t imagine any reason why Kerberos wouldn’t want to know something like this……but the more he thought about Kerberos, the heavier his heart felt. Despite the oppressive summer heat, a chill twisted through Reiki’s lungs and a question nagged at the back of his mind: If his powers had done this to Fang, but ostensibly not to Kerberos, then……what had he done?
Considering what Kerberos had said about his drinking problem, Reiki wasn’t sure that he’d like any of the answers.
But—taking a sharp, deep breath, Reiki tried to push those thoughts aside. They weren’t helping anyone right now, so they were Future Reiki’s problem. Making himself look back toward Fang, he said, “Let me know when you’re ready? I got you some cheesy fries, too. And some water, if you’re thirsty?”
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