3.0 - week three

[afflictionmods]

WEEK THREE

Last night might have been exhausting for any number of reasons - maybe it was the emotional

toll of dealing with those ghosts, or maybe you stayed up too late after watching Jim Shrok. Who knows, but Saturday is over, even if some of you haven’t quite left it behind and half spirits that are still hanging on, tethered to you and weighing you down…

But that’s not going to stop a new week from starting. There’s no breaks in an eight week course.

There’s very little fanfare to the start of your third week of the course, though it does seem like the fog has lifted even more. It’s a bit more of a trek down the abandoned streets of Estelline, but surely a mile is walkable? Or you could grab a bike or try to hotwire one of those cars in the mall parking lot… Whatever you plan to do this week is up to you. All you know is you've got some new locations to explore.

As always, Florence and Lorelei are available.

SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY

TASK LIST


( OOC Note: Luci, Mutsu, and Mae will each receive a small roomba! Congrats on the successful egg drop. It's a tiny little friend that cleans extra well, though this also means its trash compartment is a little smaller so it'll need to be cleaned more often. )

FULL NAV

(CODE)

Comments

room!

[cheerfuldays]

( shizuku announces herself with a gentle knock before peaking in. in all honesty, she's still tired. she's spent perhaps too long tucked under madara's chin, though- and she's an idol. people need her. so when she gets idia's attention, she waves. )

Idia. May I come in?

[ignihidden]

[Compared to last Saturday this one was.... exhausting! Maybe too much?! It absolutely threw of the predicted line graph of difficulty so now anything was possible.]

Ah, M'lady Shizuku. [there's the little startle of "a person is here" but it settles and he waves with his non bandaged hand]

C- [he pauses to scan his eyes across the room- and he still hasn't accumulated enough stuff for it to become truly messy]

Come in. [this is hardly the kind of place he can imagine an idol stepping in... never mind that Shizuku's dorm room was probably the exact same.]

[cheerfuldays]

Thank you.

( she doesn't presume to take a seat, but she seems comfortable enough despite the sprouts of mess. (perhaps unfortunately for the monologue, shizuku and madara are both terribly clean people.) )

... How are you feeling?

[ignihidden]

Um, hm... g- good? [that doesn't sound right but it's what he's saying]

I- I was going to visit M'lady Shizuku but Sunday was a day of rest a- and today I was accosted and robbed of my clothes...

[aka Cater made him surrender them for laundry]

[cheerfuldays]

I'm glad to hear. That was... really rough. And you were so upset- and then we got separated, and I was worried sick.

( and when they all finally were let out, she had smelled blood. but everyone looked so drained, she didn't know how to voice her concerns properly or- or anything. some idol she is, honestly. )

Though... given how even I'm still a little tired, I wouldn't say there's anything wrong with resting still, either.

[ignihidden]

Don't worry, M'lady Shizuku! I- I was fine!

[He's leaning forward where he sits, like trying to really press the idea. Probably because absolutely none of them were fine.]

I- If you're still tired, then you shouldn't push yourself... i- if you were to trip or sprain something... a bad event could happen at any moment...

[So, he's shuffling off his bed, pulling out his desk chair, and setting it to face where he was perching on the bed. His bandaged hand is pretty clearly visible and he does grab things slightly different to compensate but there's no wince of pain or anything. He gestures. Your throne, my lady???]

[cheerfuldays]

( oh- shizuku lets him fuss a little but. don't think she doesn't see those bandages, mister. but if he wants her to sit, she'll sit. for a moment, she smiles up at him before her mood turns a little somber. )

You don't have to be fine, you know. It's... Saturday was incredibly trying. It's alright if you're not okay after all that- if you still aren't. Please don't force yourself to "be" recovered faster.

Like... with your hand. ... I'm not going to ask. But just because it's all that's visible doesn't mean that it's the only thing you have that needs healing.

[ignihidden]

[The things Shizuku is saying would probably make him grimace if they came from anyone else. They were coming from Shizuku, though, so he does listen. He glances over at his tablet, thinking about it,]

[It's still hard for him to accept that. He caused a lot more trouble than he received.]

... ah, well... um...

[He wants to say something that reassures Shizuku, but it's a little embarrassing...]

... plenty of people... looked out for me. If... they didn't, I'm sure it would have been a lot, lot worse...

[He couldn't quite say "friends" or that they "helped" or that he was "grateful" but that's the sort of feelings behind what he's saying. So, rather than sounding listless and depressed, the sentence has a little warmth behind it and the very edges of his hair tinge pink.]

[cheerfuldays]

That's good. And I'm glad- I know that things were rough for everyone.

( and she is! she's visibly relieved as she smiles, knowing that the others helped him. she'd seen quite a few injuries and... despite being stalked and toyed with by the hollow, she was still ultimately unharmed. not everyone was so lucky. but more importantly- )

Your hair changed color... that's so cute! Is it because you're happy...?

[ignihidden]

Uweh? [he makes an embarrassed sound and the pink encroaches a bit more than the tips]

That- it's not- it-

[The stammer comes to a stop as the color actually hits his cheeks as well.]

Cute?

[cheerfuldays]

Yes! It's adorable!

( shizuku you are KILLING HIM. THIS IS HOW THE MURDERGAME STARTS AND YOU WILL BE THE FIRST CULPRIT. )

[ignihidden]

[You did it, Shizuku, it's a full-pink head of flamey hair. Meanwhile, the blue is inside. Because he's blue-screened. He has no idea how to answer this.]

[he falls over dead on his bed]

[cheerfuldays]

OH- Oh goodness, Idia, are you okay?!

( shizuku stands with a jolt as he falls, hovering- what does she do oh no- )

[ignihidden]

Iz fine... iz fine...

[A pathetic lil mumble from a man broken by being called "cute" by a cute girl.]

[cheerfuldays]

( how this was supposed to be a thread about ortho and stuff and now idia's dying because he was called cute...

shizuku frets, before settling on fanning him gently. )

I'm sorry, I didn't mean to overwhelm you like that.

[ignihidden]

[It's okay, Ortho would approve of his big brother being called cute when he's being cute.]

[Anyways, Idia Shroud OS... Rebooting... Re-initializing...]

N- No, sorry, just... never in a million years w- would I consider... this one... cute...

[cheerfuldays]

Do you need a bit?

( she can leave if she needs- he looks so overwhelmed... )

[ignihidden]

N- No, I'm fine, you don't have to, um-

[... what was she even offering that he didn't need? He can't even remember. Either way, he says lying down, and grabs the pillow from the top of the bed to hold onto and hug.]

... we can keep... talking...

[He's just gonna stay horizontal for it.]

[cheerfuldays]

Alright. But if you need me to go at all, please let me know. I don't want you to be uncomfortable.

( which... might end up happening anyways, with why she came here.

sitting down again, shizuku puts her hands on her lap and lets a soft quiet settle for just a moment. )

Idia? Could... I ask who Ortho is?

[ignihidden]

Eh? ...

[he glances up at her, a little surprised by the question, but not uncomfortable]

Ortho is my little brother. That... thing, [the ghoul,] imitated his voice... ... t- to be honest, I did really believe for a second that maybe he'd come to get me.

[Ortho was that strong, after all. Because he made him that way.]

[cheerfuldays]

You had been calling for him when I found you.

( his little brother... what if they had tried using shiho...? clutching the pendant of her necklace, shizuku shudders for a moment. )

I can't blame you. Had they tried with my little sister's voice, I would have fallen for it too.

[ignihidden]

... fueheh. [a little smile, as he half-buries his cheek in the mattress]

M'lady Shizuku is team big sibling, too... It suits you.

[In his eyes, maybe Shizuku read more as "big sibling" than he did. When Ortho was around he really hoped he looked it but. It's not like people looked at just him and thought "yes, that's definitely someone I would trust having responsibility over younger children."]

[cheerfuldays]

Mm. Her name is Shiho. I love her a lot, you know?

( shizuku sounds warm as she speaks, leaning back a little. there's a lot of little context clues she's missing entirely, honestly- sometimes the joy of Little Siblings just takes over. )

Tell me about Ortho!

[ignihidden]

[My Lady Shizuku and Young Lady Shiho... he'll have to commit that to memory-!!]

Eh? A- About Ortho? [he's pulled away from New Idol Factoid,]

[There's a dark place he could take "tell me about Ortho" but there was always the dichotomy when that question was asked. It was a dichotomy that Idia specifically drug his finger through to make it less distinct. Ortho was Ortho, he would think, ignoring key details.]

... w- well. He's really cute. H- He always wants to play games with me, a- although nowadays we have to find ways to make it fair...

[you know, considering Ortho could literally be TASbot if he wanted]

[cheerfuldays]

Aaah, I remember when Shii was like that...! She likes single-player games now though- except for pet-raising sims where you can have your pet mingle with your friends'...

( so cute! )

I hope I get to meet him.