Bar
Stormer was standing not too far from where Alfred was at the party. Given how his last misadventure here went, he was hoping that the ice cream woman wouldn't show up to screw with him again. He finished his glass of water, and walked over to his partner.
"Hello, Alfred.", he said, "Some party, huh?"
"Never let anyone tell you that something is impossible." - Monty Oum, 1981-2015Silvia was at the party by Rufus's side. She shyly glanced over at Imuka and belle, wearing the dress Imuka had suggested to her.
"What do you think I should do?" Silvia asked.
The Crystal Caverns A bird's gotta sing.Bar Dance Floor
Charisse winced for a moment from a sudden headache.
How odd. She was back on the dance floor, holding Ai in the waltzing pose from before.
"I thought you waltzed at Balls. Or some other kind of dance. I only know this... And maybe a Salsa, if I try. Or was it called a tango?"
"Gimme your pants.. and now your other pants"Duel
Owww!
Yeah, that leg went down, taking Alexia with it. No! Not yet!
Ignoeing the searing pain, Alexia grabbed hold of whatever body part she could reach as she fell...Cyanea's ankle. As they both hit the ground, Alexia twisted it, twisted it with all her might.
Rooftop
Alexia smiled bitterly. "You're right. Caring for everyone, helping everyone...is impossible."
She looked at Alfred, straight on. "But even if it is, I can still try can't I?!" She threw his words back at him.
"Even if I fail, even if I get nothing but pain, even if I die trying! I can still try!"
As soon as she said those words, her eyes widened in shock. An epiphany! That's it...That's it! The answer! The answer!
"No matter how dark the world gets, no matter how terrible things get...I can still try to help! Even if I fail, I can try again! I can save some people, surely! Fall down seven times, get up eight. Don't give up..because...that's the only thing you can do..."
She was crying now. Tears of joy, of grief, of pain and of sweet relief.
"I found the answer..." she whispered.
Laughing, she ran over and glomped her knight. "Oh, Alfred! Thank you, oh, thank you!"
Rewound
"Hmm? Oh, no I do not mind." Ieria said as she stood up from where she was sitting, turning to Hope as she did so. "Lead the way, friend."
Saved by BDSM
Ieria swallowed a breath of air as she looked at Medus and nodded. "Y-yes...mine and yours." She said quietly as she kissed him back. He could feel her trembling and shaking as she held onto him. "T-thank you..."
"I am nature's weapon. You are unfit to carry on your species, and I shall ensure that you do not do so!" - Charles Darwin, XCOM SniperHeart-to-heart
Hope nodded, leading Ieria to some quieter corner of the club, preferably the one where no peeping toms were present.
She stayed silent for a moment, staring blankly at something before focusing on the Snake Faunus herself. "...I'll cut to the case. It's about February."
Alfred Saves The Day
...well, at least she'd found what she was looking for. Can't help but just smile when she does.
...I miss that Alexia.
Hope smiled at the princess excitedly glomping her knight, feeling her head a bit lighter and less guilt-filled than before. At least there's that.
edited 30th Jan '15 5:44:03 PM by FergardStratoavis
Heart to Heart
Ieria felt a small part of herself break off and die at Hope's words. Her shoulders slumped down and she felt like she would sink to the floor at any moment. "Y-yes..?" She asked hesitantly.
"I am nature's weapon. You are unfit to carry on your species, and I shall ensure that you do not do so!" - Charles Darwin, XCOM SniperMotivating by Hope Remington
"...you took her death way harder than others." Hope wasn't a good talker, she was rather aware of that. For that matter she wasn't a good motivator either.
But something had to be done to snap Ieria out of her funk, particularly if all the gray-hair could see was a mirror.
"You're blaming yourself for her death, aren't you? Way more than Remus or Lucas?" She asked, her voice soft, but neutral.
Interrogating Ieria
Pius stood quietly while Medus calmed his partner and got the truth from her.
If only we could do that for our partner.
The Nobel made his way upstairs to his workshop, where he tried to work through what happened tonight. Then he saw Alexia, found himself incapable as her supporter, and returned to his workshop to sleep. He made sure to lock the door even to his teammates' Scrolls after he woke up thinking about them.
They do not need us tonight. And again Pius failed to rest his mind.
Carol's Party
"He'll get it, Jack," Pius replied before he took a sip of water. "It's sitting in the kitchen waiting for 10 o'clock." He made a small smile at the memory of his arrangement with the management. "I haven't yet made a birthday cake that hasn't been received, and I'm not starting with Lucas."
Allurand and surrounding world loading, 28%...Talking With Hope
Ieria looked down at the floor at Hope's words. "That would be because it was my fault...I ran out with the other three in my arms. And I completely forgot about February..." She said through sobs.
"I am nature's weapon. You are unfit to carry on your species, and I shall ensure that you do not do so!" - Charles Darwin, XCOM SniperMan, I Suck At This
"You can't blame yourself for her death. This will eat you from the inside out." Hope shook her head, her expression thoughtful. "...ask yourself a question, Ieria: would you be able to carry out everyone from there? Or would it get you all killed?"
"...I've been in that situation. At my Initiation, two years ago." Slowly, the gray-hair wheeled over to Ieria and pulled her into a small, gentle hug. A reassuring one. "I know what you feel, Ieria. I know that all too well. It's why I'm telling you to not let this cloud your head. Anger... sadness, these are not answers you seek. They will only lead to more despair and, well, at some point there's no turning back."
...I'm spouting nonsense. Utter nonsense.
...this is different. Completely different. Or is it?
Party Hardy
"I'm fine, love. Wow, that felt like a sledgehammer to the face." said Carol, wincing slightly.
"...Wonder if Mina got out okay..."
"...And she would not have been in that situation at all if I wasn't so careless." A calm voice told Ieria.
It was Ozpin, sipping a glass of red wine. "Tomorrow, I will face poor Miss Tallspine's family...or what's left of it."
Carol's Party
"Of course not," Pius replied with a sudden edge, fingers gripping his cup a little tighter. "I wouldn't think to make a gesture that I know won't be reciprocated. Besides," The Nobel took a moment to glance at Alfred from the corner of his vision. "I'm not who she wants to dance with. Not really, anyway. I'm not sure if you'll understand, Jack."
Allurand and surrounding world loading, 28%...Junior's Party
A dark-skinned man strode into the bar like he owned the place, dressed in nice formal colors.
◊ He watched the students with a neutral expression, and nodded to the bartender. He grabbed a whiskey, then walked over to them.
"I wanna help you guys kill somebody you want dead." He looked over at Pius and lowered his glasses. "Because so do we. Show of good faith." Pius would recognize Icarus Kane's voice if he had a single neuron left in his brain.
Carol's Party
"Hand me something that makes everyone else's problems go away, and maybe I'll think about it," Pius replied as he looked at the dance floor. "Both my feet are as left as my writing hand, anywa—"
Then a familiar voice appeared. The Nobel's gray gaze hardened as the month of Umbra returned to the front of his mind.
"You," Pius said, nodding his head at Jack as a signal to leave the two alone. "I didn't think you'd have this kind of courage, sir."
edited 30th Jan '15 7:32:53 PM by Insano
Allurand and surrounding world loading, 28%...Kane thumped his chest with his palms twice, then threw his hands up. "My stuff's in my car in the lot. I'm helpless. Because I want to help, and I hope that I can open up some dialogue with you guys about our whole situation. Like you guys, I'm super pissed Judgment did all her stuff. And when World pulled his stunt. Because I'm not working with Arcana, I got my own shit going on, ja feel? You game to work with me, maybe open negotiations while I help?"

Back In Time, Yay!
"...hey, Ieria." The snake Faunus would probably recognize the usual monotone drone as Hope's. "You busy? I was wondering if I could borrow you for a moment. Wanted to talk to you, in private if possible."
Though Hope couldn't possibly know this, a similar short conversation occured certain time ago. Hopefully this time nothing would interrupt it.