I will never, ever fall, never stumble, and I don't need to be humble

[mooninthewater]

Who: Mizuki & you!
What: Mizuki's here to talk to people now.
When: Couple days after the meeting.
Where: Inn or Therapy Building.
Warnings: Will be in the titles as they come up.

[ Mizuki hasn't really shown himself around the Grove since being outed by Irene. Add and Elsword got to see him, and Vash got to see him the one time, too, but overall? He just kept to his camouflage and sauntered around the place in secret.

Now he thinks he's finally ready for people to come talk to him. He gets the feeling that no one beyond Irene (and Lancer, though he hasn't realized this, yet) is actually mad at him, but he knows there's bound to be a lot of questions. Questions he's not really ready to answer.

Doctor Kal'tsit is going to be so disappointed in him.

You'll visibly find him in one of two places. One, the lobby of the inn, of which he'll be in the chair on the opposite end of the lobby of the Inquisition fireplace. He just stares at it, even as people enter and exit, lost in thought. Two, he'll be at the therapy building. Either just outside, putting cute stickers on the door outside, or in the lobby, playing Frogger.

He doesn't make the effort to actually talk to anyone, but he won't immediately bail if you walk up to him, either. ]

Comments

therapy building interior

[livlaughlove]

[It's been... a little over a week. The previously shaved side of Livio's head is coming in with messy, short hair, and his jaw is peppered with stubble. He finally has a shirt, a sweater, and even a winter coat.

But he is still not familiar with everything in town, which he is trying to fix. So it is that he wanders into the therapy building and sees a face he's been missing ever since the whole meetup debacle.

While he doesn't slam it, he makes sure to shut the door behind himself loud enough that nobody in the room should be surprised to find themselves with company. And he approaches Mizuki without much tact after that, to hover over his shoulder and look at the screen.]

Is that Mario Kart?

[mooninthewater]

[ Realistically, it's not very easy to sneak up on someone who's made it their job to be sneaky themselves. No matter how engrossed in the game he currently is, he is very aware of his surroundings. He doesn't give Livio much acknowledgement until he approaches, however, considering… well, it's just in case he's here for the amenities here, and not for Mizuki. He does finally look up at him when he speaks, however. ]

Oh… hi Mister Livio. [ Realistically, of the people who would come to talk to Mizuki, he's perhaps the most vocal with him, considering the very last thing he'd gotten from Mizuki was a hug. He's glad that whatever happened after he left didn't make Livio completely hate him. Positive sides! ]

Well, this is a video game, like Mario Kart. Mario Kart is a racing game, though. This is called "Frogger". You play as this little pixelated froggy and you have to jump across logs and lilypads and stuff to get to the other side.

But they're moving at different speeds or in different directions and if you jump in the water, you lose.

…Do you want to give it a try, Mister Livio? [ He scoops up a bunch of the stuffed animals nearby to make a pseudo-seat for him. ] You can give it a go.

[livlaughlove]

Hi, Mizuki. You don't have to call me "mister," you know.

[He still can't quite shake the feeling that it seems like a waste of time... but it's a way to bond with each other. And as Livio made it clear, so long as they're stuck together, they might as well be allies. So he takes the "seat" without much fuss.]

Can I watch you first? You seem like you know what you're doing.

[mooninthewater]

…I don't wanna be impolite, is all. [ Don't be too offended, Livio, there's very few people he doesn't use titles for.

Still, he gives a little nod and waits for Livio to have a seat before he's leaning against him so the vantage point of seeing his screen is a little better. Unsurprisingly, Mizuki is making the game look extremely easy, quickly spotting the most efficient paths and even rarely needing to stop before he gets to the end. ]

[livlaughlove]

I get it. Do whatever you're comfortable with.

Should I be calling you "mister" too? I don't want to be rude, either.

[After how quickly Mizuki ran away from that confrontation, Livio is surprised he's comfortable enough to lean on him. Not that he's complaining; he can't deny having even the smallest protective instinct for the Seaborn, threat or not.

And he may make the game look easy, but Livio isn't that naive. It's all judgment calls, thinking ahead, and reaction times. That takes training.]

You play this a lot?

[mooninthewater]

Umm… if you want to, I suppose. But I'm pretty sure I'm younger than you, so it's really not necessary.

[ Livio is also Very Tall compared to Mizuki's 5'2", so… ]

I play video games in general a lot. They're a lot of fun, and I'm really good at them. Plus, they're all basically just stories on a screen as far as I'm concerned. I really like to see the sorts of things that people create and the stories they weave — those sorts of things make me really happy.

Therapy Building Interior

[sesa]

[Sesa, admittedly, hasn't spoken to Mizuki since the meeting. It's far less because he doesn't want to, and more because he hasn't wanted to invade his need for space and privacy...especially when he's been hard to find as of late. His talk with Gnosis has opened his eyes a bit as to the plight that caused such strife in the first place, yet...he still feels woefully unprepared for a conversation surrounding it.

More than anything, he's worried about his friend. He wants to make sure Mizuki is okay, above all else.

So he heads for the therapy building, in hopes that he'll find his little buddy in his usual spot playing videogames. And sure enough...

He'll probably hear the clonking of his boots as Sesa approaches, shifting to sit down cross-legged next to Mizuki. He's already reaching for one of the spare controllers.]

Is there room for another player?

[mooninthewater]

[ He's looking up at Sesa for a moment, a little unsurprised, but also just a smidge apologetic. He should've come sought his friend out instead of just sitting around, but… ]

Mmh… I can swap us to multiplayer, hold on…

[ Two player Frogger, lessgo.

Mizuki picks up a bunch of nearby stuffed animals with his tentacles to slide over to Sesa so he can be just a little more comfortable instead of just sitting on the floor. ]

[sesa]

[The addition of toys is much appreciated, coaxing a smile out of the Vouivre as he settles among all the soft things once Mizuki has gotten them set up. And since they're playing multiplayer, and also a game that they've probably played a hundred times previously, it won't be hard to have a conversation over it.

But...how to broach the topic? He isn't quite so sure.

So for a little bit he simply plays with Mizuki in silence, waiting for a lull between levels to try and speak up.]

It's good to see you again, Mizuki.

[mooninthewater]

[ Name any retro game and Mizuki can list you 100 facts about it and play it as if it's a simple shape-matching game. He probably doesn't even need to pay attention to the screen, either, but he's intentionally not looking at Sesa as he speaks. ]

…Yeah, it's good to see you, too. Sorry about… all of that. I didn't mean to make anyone upset or worry.

[sesa]

No...it's alright, Mizuki. You have nothing to apologize for. I am just glad you are alright.

[Seeing Irene attack him like that, unprovoked...minor injury or no, it was scary. Sesa hadn't been able to do anything but stand there and watch, and he still feels plenty guilty over it.]

I just wanted to say...that if you would rather not talk about what happened, then I am fine with that. You have my support regardless.

[mooninthewater]

[ Okay, now he'll look at Sesa. ]

Thank you. But, honestly, I'm not upset about what happened. I'm rather indifferent about talking about it, too. The only reason I kept it from everyone was because Doctor Kal'tsit had told me I shouldn't tell anyone. And before that Cicero had said the same thing.

…

I didn't want to lie to you, I hope you know that.

inn lobby and i'm sorry

[succiduous]

Oh, good, you're here.

[It's nice to see Mizuki Around again. He's got the little Friend Mizuki made him clipped onto his belt, and if his ability to move is anything to go by, he's healing up nicely. Still on crutches, but his ribs are no longer bothering him.]

Will you come with me to the lab? I want to show you something.

["I am trying to distract you from that fireplace come here let me be a nerd at you"]

[mooninthewater]

…Hi, Mister Gnosis. Um, yeah I can come to the lab with you…??? [ What is happening—-

Whatever, he'll stand up and go to Gnosis' side almost instinctively so he can make sure Gnosis is moving alright on his own and that they can move a little faster out in the snow so bird doesn't stay cold. This is Gnosis' preferred weather, sure, but still… ]

Can I ask what it is, exactly?

[succiduous]

I think you'll like it. It's something I built for the holidays.

[And he will say no more on this topic until they get there, but luckily it isn't a long walk from one side of town to the other. Gnosis opens the lab door and nudges Mizuki inside, out of the cold and into the... well the lab is still kinda cold but that's beside the point.

Near the door but out of the way of walking space is this fucking thing.]

This, [stupid smirk incoming,] is the Chemis-tree.

[oh my god]

1/2

[mooninthewater]

..........................................................

[mooninthewater]

Pfft- [ It took him a second- ] Ehehehehe!!!! Gnosis! Have you really been working on something like this just for that pun???

[ Giggly jellyfish nudges you playfully, what do you do??? ]

[succiduous]

[Heh.]

I used to put something similar up in the lab on Kjerag. [Of course you did.] We tried to have one on Rhodes Island, but the first year I was there, we put it too close to Thorns.

[It blew up.]

[mooninthewater]

Oh. [ Oh no. ] Yeah, Mister Thorns is...

...

He's interesting. [ Mizuki hasn't met him much, but they've given nods to each other in some vague Basically Raised In Iberia As An Aegir solidarity sometimes. The difference being that Mizuki hasn't really experienced The Racism ever... ] I see you were excited to set it up again.

Borrows my own post for this-

[mooninthewater]

[ After the meeting Mizuki had been… out of commission for a bit, and then there was that excursion with Wolfwood and… there was just a lot going on! And then the ice castle shit happened?! Shit's crazy.

Anyway, he leaves notes for Elsword and Livio to come meet Mizuki around noon outside the mansion, and after he collects two notebooks from Ydalir for the kids, he patiently waits outside for them to show up. Mizuki isn't… weak by any means, but he's never had to throw anything that wasn't a harpoon. Books are weird? He tied a rubber band around them to keep them closed while they're yeeted at the mansion so they don't flop open mid-air, but that's the most he could offer.

He'll leave the frisbee throwing to the people who said they could handle that part. ]

[livlaughlove]

[there really has been a hell of a lot going on in the short time liv's been here. it's almost overwhelming, and yet... he feels some semblance of settling in.

his neutral, maybe even slightly relaxed mood drops when he approaches the mansion, though. he's on the lookout for rusty, of course, but it's really the sound coming from inside that still wears on him. he acknowledges mizuki with a short wave, even as his gaze is trained on the building.]

Hey, Mizuki. How've you been holdin' up?

comes in a day late with starbucks

[simplicitas]

[Elsword quite literally flies into the scene a second after Livio arrives. Hello. Hi. It's him.

When he looks at the manor, he still feels a lot of guilt. He broke in there almost a year ago now, and ever since then, the mansion has been tossing people out. Elsword shouldn't even go in as he is now, corrupted and such, but he still feels a sense of urgency to help.]

Hey. Sorry I'm late. [a whole thirty seconds late, but yeah.]

I see your day and raise you a month-

[mooninthewater]

No, not late at all. I know I was pretty vague about the time frame. Thanks for showing up! And I'm doing fine — I've just been thinking more about how it would be nice to get a hold of the kids inside, if possible…

[ He lifts two notebooks that he got from the Trader and holds them out to his friends. ] I'm not sure what the best method to do that. I feel like if it's outside the house, they might not notice, so I think the best way might be to throw it through the windows… Do you guys think that's possible?

[livlaughlove]

[livio gives them both a nod as greeting, and listens dutifully to mizuki's concerns... he thinks it over for all of two seconds, looking between the two of them, then at himself.

really cannot stress enough that they would have to sit on each others' shoulders to be as big as him.]

... I just need a big rock. And something to tie the notebooks to it.

[simplicitas]

[it's like looking up at a fucking sequoia, bro]

There are lots of big rocks laying around. I can get a sturdy rope from Mister Heimr, if you want me to.

[....actually yeah he's going to go do that right now, unless either of the two grab him like no elsword—]