(OP-F16) The Beach Volleyball Episode

[Embers 0]

Embers closed her crimson eyes as Tsu started talking to her, a deep breath going through her chest. She didn’t see Tsu’s eyes roaming her body as she let out a lazy laugh “Oh nothing much, I had nothing better to do. My guild leaders been tryin’ to ride me about stuff, but he’s nothing more than a pain sometimes” She muttered. Domarus was constantly trying to string up to him, sometimes she couldn’t stand it. “I just miss the beach, it’s been forever since I’ve just layed back and relaxed. If I’d of known there was a beach, I’d of come here a while back” She stretched out once again, right as a bird landed near the pair of girls. A white-Tailed Hawk.

“There you are, damn buzzard” She muttered at the Hawk, which turned a curious green eye to Tsu “Don’t worry, she’s harmless. Rowan, that’s Tsu. Tsu, meet my buzzard of a familiar, Rowan” She said lazily, her eyes back to closed. Of course, that's when she heard it. Someone yelling a certain name, and while she didn't open her eyes, she was listening out carefully. Pinball was a name that stired many emotions, including the 'I'm gunna punch his face out' emotion. 

[Froppy 0]

Tsu listened to Embers say that she came because she had nothing better to do, and her guild leader was being a bit of a pain. Tsu hadn't really had a problem with Stryder yet, so she couldn't say much on the subject. Emebers then said that she just missed the beach, and Tsu patted her on the shoulder with her tongue. "Well, it's still good to see you enjoying yourself, ribbit." Tsu said simply before Rowan flew down between them. The hawk turned towards Tsu and Embers introduced Rowan, saying Rowan was harmless. "Rowan doesn't eat frogs right, ribbit? That would be a bit of a problem for me if that was the case, rrrrrribbit." Tsu joked, staring into Rowan's eyes. Then she saw Pinball come along and Tsu got a similar, 'I'm gonna punch is face out' emotion as well. Tsu got up and walked over to Pin, giving him a friendly wave with a small smile, before grabbing his opposite shoulder that Spangie had grabbed onto, pressing her chest up against him a bit with it squishing against his side a little bit. "Hi Pin! Didn't expect to see you here, ribbit! Are you just here to leer at us? Since this is about the only time you'll see us wearing so little, ribbit." Tsu greeted, before taking a few steps back and keeping her smile.

[Pinball 1]

Pinball was caught off guard by Spangie's rapid approach. She had thrown Hazado off in an instant, it seemed to him. Poor guy, he thought, before getting slugged in the arm by the blonde. "Ow, damn it," he whined, rubbing the dull sting out of his arm. "How did you not go orange?" It seemed like Cardinal was fine with Pinball getting punched; it was obviously the case, if he had gotten punched by both Reinholt and Spangie without there being any divine intervention. "And no, I don't usually go to things like this. Like. At all." Pinball rubbed the back of his head, flakes of sand cascading down his back. "I was just about to get going." 

It was when he heard Froppy's voice, he knew he should have left sooner. He had only been distracted by Spangie for a moment, but Froppy was already swooping in. His posture went rigid as Froppy rubbed against him. So this is a harem anime, he thought, his face turning red. "Uhh," was all he managed to squeak. He gently pulled himself away, taking a step back when Froppy let go. "That last part sounded like a jab at me," he replied in a monotone. His voice was exceedingly unenthusiastic as he stared off into the distance.  "Froppy, you wound me."

Edited May 2, 2018 by Pinball

[Spangie 0]

"Hehe.." she put a finger up to her lips and snickered. "That's a secret. You're just lucky this isn't IRL or you'd be in the hospital," she grinned and rubbed the spot where she hit him. "No pain, no gain right?" The blonde player looked behind him to see a small spot of cleared out sand. "Oh really?" she frowned, tugging on his ear harshly. "It's no wonder you're so awkward," she pouted, still tugging. "Get some friends or something. I'm starting to think I'm the only friend you got," she huffed, crossing her arms. She peeked behind his shoulder to see a spot of cleared sand. "Were you sleeping her or something? It looks like you've been here for a while."

The player's face immediately went red as soon as she saw the 'scene' unfold in front of her. "Eheh.. I-I'm sure he has some other reason to be here," she said awkwardly, covering half of her face with a hand. "I see that you know two knows each other though! Thats good!" she gave a thumbs up to @Pinball and grinned, But her grin slowly faded as Pinball spoke to @Froppy in a blank manner. Am I missing something here? she tilted her head and whispered to Pinball. "Ya aight' there buddy?" It was more of a loud mutter, "Whats going on?"

[Arabelle 0]

And yet again, a bucketload of water was dumped onto Arabelle's head. She whirled around and spotted @Hazado running away while yelling an apology. Why was she always the main target when it comes to buckets full of water?! Oh, right. Compared to Angie, they don't have to lift it up that high. The short-statured girl's face went red at her realization. "I'll-I'll get you both for that!" she declared, running over to the ocean to refill her bucket. 

She hefted up the now-full bucket, water sloshing off its sides, and looked for her next target. Angie was running after Hazado...oh wait, she had approached a new arrival. She squinted and moved a bit closer. Is that Pin? Arabelle spotted Tsu sidling up to the boy and pretty much pressing her boobs against his arm. The boy's face went red. That's definitely him. Back together, then? The purple-haired girl wanted to watch the drama unfolding before her, but then remembered she still had someone to dump water on. Arabelle looked around quickly and saw Hazado now alone and Grimm standing quite a distance away. Eenie meenie miney mo... Her gaze landed on Hazado. Grinning, she tightened her grip on her bucket and took off in a run.

At some point, she managed to get ahead of him and stopped directly in front of him with an evil grin. "My, my. I definitely didn't expect that. It seems that the quiet boy has a feisty side." Her smile turned teasing. "You're adorable." And as the boy stood surprised at her statement, she spun and swung her bucket upwards with all her might. The water hit him directly in the face. "Bye!" Arabelle winked and ran away. She jogged up to @Pinball and @Spangie, making sure to keep the two between her and Hazado. If he came to attack her with another bucket...he'd have to go through those two first. "Pin! Finally another guy! You here to admire all the pretty girls? Or maybe the guys?" Arabelle greeted with a smile. She took a few moments to read the situation. For one thing, Angie seemed a bit worried. A small frown appeared on Arabelle's face. So they're not back together. Aw.

[Hazado 0]

As Spangie yelled out a few things like Kyaaahhh! I've been trapped and May someone help me That made him laugh a bit  "That's a bit of me saying revenge @Spangie, Next time there will be a bit more water thou."  As Spangie got up, he stayed on the ground as she patted him on his head. After she walked of Hazado gave up and went lay down, but at that moment @Arabelle Walked up with a bucket, He stood up real quick as she stood for him.  "I'm a bit sorry for dropping the water on you Arabelle..." As she under broke him as he spoke. As she said the thing about him having a feisty side took him not of guard. "I know I can be Reckless sometime,"  He said to Arabelle. But as she said You're adorable His guard went down.  "Wait, what..." As she swung her bucket upwards.

The water hits his face not even reacting or falling back a bit from the water. As Arabelle walked off with a Bye, he just stood there just to find out what was going on.What the Heck just happened, what. As he sees both Spangie and Arabelle now walk to the other boy. Clearly giving up in running or even to the sea to get some water, he walked up to see what was going on with this new player that showed up. As he appeared behind Spangie to see what was going on he could see that this player was even more awkward than himself.

"Hiy, There. And who are you?" He said and looked over at @Pinball , Who pulled himself away from @Froppy Who was holding him at that time. They seem al to know him somehow, He is doing better than me in making friends As the player was just trying to avoid eye contact with any of the girls around him.  Knowing how to break this awkwardness he stood in seeing Arabelle hide from him. "Why not break this Awkwardness here and... well... Why don't I start, Name is Hazado." As he pauses for a time, knowing what to do "Love sports and games, most likely games thou, and I moved to Japan because of my father, Because He is in the Military, and my time with him is not the best. Didn't have many friends IRL, but who cares what happened IRL, we are here now having a blast, Right?"  As he looks over at the girls. He said this like it was nothing and just realizing what he said. as he muttered a but "Didn't expect me to say that part."  As the silents fell again.

[Froppy 0]

Tsu giggled a little bit as she saw Pin's face turn red, so she hugged him again, before letting go and taking a few more steps back. Pin said that what Tsu said sounded like a jab, saying that she wounded him. "Well, it was just a joke, ribbit. But... you hardly talk to people, and you aren't the best with relationships, so I would say I'm right, rrrrrrrribbit." Tsu explained herself, hurling one last jab at Pin before sitting back down next to Embers. As much as Tsu wanted to tongue slap Pin, she couldn't do it at a fun time like this. So Tsu just laid back down on the towel with Embers and poked her shoulder with her tongue. "I just took my shot at Pin, ribbit. You can take yours if you want now, rrrrrrribbit." Tsu said, basically tagging out for Embers. Then Tsu got an idea. "Hey Pin! Come sit down with us, ribbit!"

@Pinball @Embers

[Pinball 1]

"Damn it, @Spangie, my ear!" Pinball protested, not resisting the tug; it might actually damage him, and Spangie might really go orange because of it. As she let go, Pinball straightened himself, patting down his clothes. "I do have friends," he lied indignantly, "and no, I was not sleeping here." @Arabelle was the first to approach, before Froppy had actually gotten the chance to say anything else. Why are so many of them here? When the viollete asked him if he was here to see anything, he immediately responded by shooting finger guns and a wink, as if out of pure instinct. His voice still deadpan, he simply replied, "Both. I'll take what I can get." Now there were three girls here. One player he was extremely uncomfortable around, and two others he could almost handle, to an extent. It was then a fourth player, someone who introduced himself as @Hazado, arrived. He fell silent, listening to the man's lengthy introduction. Oh, boy, we've got a real monologist here, he thought grumpily. You probably don't have friends 'cause you bite their ears off. Pinball rubbed his face, trying to wipe the remaining sleepiness away. It was making him irritable. "Nice to meet you, Mike Tyson." 

It was then that Froppy finally spoke. "Those are all... very pointed. Ouch." Pinball shrugged it off, rolling his eyes as he turned away and Froppy walked off. He started to back away from the group. When Froppy called out from across the beach to come lie with her and Embers, he forced a grin, even though he was still quite agitated, throwing his thumbs up. He started to back away, towards the water. "Nope, I'm good. I'll just be over here. You guys have fun over there." He stopped himself from throwing an extra comment at @Embers: I know how sensitive to the sun you gingers are. His feet hit the water, and Pinball turned, now pushing through the ocean as if he were a man on a mission, tank top and all. He kept going until the water reached his shoulders (which was very far out, for someone of his height), turning one last time to see the figures on the beach. "Nope," he bubbled, and dunked his head into the water, sinking below the surface.

[Fae 0]

Fae watched as more people started to come, including @Pinball. He went into the water immediately, so Fae couldn't really say hi to him. But now it seemed like a good time to start. Fae climbed up her referee chair and waved her hands out. "Thank you all for coming! At this time we will be starting the first of our beach activities, volleyball! That's right, there's more than just volleyball! We'll also have a swimsuit contest and a sandcastle contest! But anyway, the first team for volleyball is Arabelle and Spangie! They will be playing against Froppy and Embers! Come on over to the net girls!" Fae announced as she got out a volleyball and tossed it to Arabelle. Fae then stepped down from her chair and pulled off the tarp on a bar right next to the net. "For the guys, feel free to grab a drink at the bar! Fae will be bartender during the game. So first to 11 points wins! Have fun!"

[Embers 0]

Pinball. For most people, Embers usually couldn’t place a finger on why she wanted to deck them out, but he wasn’t one of them. She knew, very damn clearly, why she wanted nothing more than to make sweet love to his face, with her fist. Over, and over, and over again. But, Tsu seemed to be handling the idiot well enough and so, as much as the temptation was there, she didn’t act on it. It was Tsu’s battle, not her own. If the frog-girl failed to step up to the plate however, well, Embers would.

It seemed that the arrival of Pinball, everyone abandoned the water to come over. And one fo the guys started talking, to which Embers tuned him out. She honestly didn’t care who they were, or where they came from. She’d come to relax and hang out on the beach, not listen to some sob-story or whatever the boy was rambling about.

“I’ll take my shot later” she muttered lazily back to Tsu “Can’t be bothered right now” Was her reason, mostly because she was comfortable lying on her towel. She didn’t notice the boy retreating into the water and she placed her arms above her head and stretched out on the towel once again, right as she heard her name, yet again. But this time, it was from…Fae? Soemthing about volleyball? She sat up and looked at the frog-girl sitting near her “Christ…I have no idea how the hell you play that stupid game…” Normally, Embers wouldn’t bother going up. But she sorta liked Tsu, in the weird way you like a human-animal hybrid, and making the other girl lose out on whatever the hell the prize wasn’t playing it fair “If it’s as simple as hit the stupid ball somewhere though…” As the 6’0 girl stood up, Rowan flocked onto her shoulder, the White-Tailed Hawk looking around curiously.

[Spangie 0]

The confused player sweat dropped and gave a nervous chuckle, "W-well, why don't we just enjoy each others company huh?" But only soon after she finished, everyone was already dispersing, whether it be to sunbathe or to swim. Ah, well there goes that chance. Her eyes twitched in irritation and she let out a deep sigh. "Why is everybody so [ Beep ] complicated," she huffed, crossing her arms and opening her inventory. Scrolling through the items, she clicked on the surface and a small pair of yellow glasses appeared in front of her. Children these days, she sighed, shaking her head and putting the glasses on, Hormones and crap. She muttered a few cruses. This is what i get for being a nice friend. She grumbled and rubbed her hands together. 

Spangie tilted her head and pushed her glasses down a bit when the seemingly 'innocent' child spoke up on a high chair. Smirking at the list of activities, she giggled and glanced over to her familiar, who was at this point digging a small hole for 'unknown' reasons. "Hey Agni, get over her you bimbo," she giggled and knelt down, opening her arms. Her familiar snorted and slowly padded past her with an amused expression, leaving her in a deadpan. "Hey, you don't have to be so rude!" she shouted, balling up her fists and waving them at the sky. Agh, can familiars even get hormones? Agni seems like he's in the mo stage in life. She sighed and stood up, pushing her glasses up. "Well this game is gonna be interesting," she giggled, bounding over to the volleyball net. Ma and Pa gave me classes on volleyball once, I'm pretty sure I can remember how to play..

[Froppy 0]

Tsu heard her name get called by Fae and as it turned out, Tsu was on the same team as Embers. It was a good pairing, and it would definitely help Tsu get just a little bit closer to Embers. Tsu kinda liked Embers, in the same way you like a drunk friend. Tsu hopped over to the volleyball net and got slightly worried when it became apparent that Embers didn't really know how to play. "Alright Embs, since you don't know how to play, I'll give you a few tips, ribbit. Just hit the ball over the net, and try to make it hard them to it. I'll try to hit what I can from the front, but just do your best, ribbit!" Tsu instructed, before giving Embers a thumbs up.

[Embers 0]

So…hit the ball over the net, within the set boundaries, and that…was it? It seemed far too simple for rules, but then again, maybe for a sport where the main attention was the players over the game, maybe that’s all it had to be. Embers cracked her knuckles with a cocky grin growing on her face.

“Sounds simple enough. I’ll learn quickly, and trust me T. When it comes to moving quick, ain’t no one better” She said confidently. Tall and powerful, Embers swept her long red hair behind her shoulders as she moved to the back end, rolling her shoulders. She may not know the rules, but she doubted she’d struggle to keep up. In the real world, she trained to be athletic and strong. In this world, those skills still lived within her.

The girls White-Tailed Hawk, who had been perched on the girls shoulder, sense the danger of what could be coming, and flew off. The familiar landed on one of the poles, looking back and forth, somewhat curious what was happening.

[Arabelle 0]

Arabelle laughed at @Pinball's response. "Yes, that's completely reasonable. I'm a straight person myself, but seeing all the lovely girls in swimsuits is making me rethink my sexuality." The purple-haired girl paused, before chuckling and waving a hand in front of her face. "Juuust kidding! Though I have to admit, I do have my eyes on one person here." As per Arabelle's usual personality, that last part was not a serious statement, too. It was just something she had purposefully said to mess with everyone. But not many people could tell that, considering the natural way she'd said it. Seb looks pretty good in a swimsuit though...

Another voice spoke up. @Hazado had followed her to the small group (comprised of mostly girls) that was now forming around Pin and initiated a conversation, much to Arabelle's surprise. Maybe it came easier for him since it was obvious that Pin was feeling very awkward, if his red face from a while ago was any indication. She noted the lack of a water-filled bucket and warily came out from her hiding spot behind Angie's back. "Hazado, this is--" Arabelle began, only to be interrupted by Tsu innocently throwing a jab at the awkward boy beside her. Oooooh, ouch. Are they even still friends at this point? Pin promptly walked out, and after an announcement made by Fae, the group dispersed. What is it with that shy kid that attracts people to him? Oh wait, I approached him too...

The purple-haired girl didn't get enough time to decide whether she should follow him or not as Fae threw a volleyball at her. "Whoa!" Arabelle backed up and caught the ball with both hands. Right. Volleyball. If catching a ball was already difficult for her, how about keeping it afloat in the air with a bunch of rules set in place? And hadn't Tsu mentioned that she played volleyball for a school team before? Oh, God. They're so gonna wipe the floor with us. She shook her head and jogged over to @Spangie and grinned. At least she would be miserably failing at volleyball with a friend. They took their positions on their side of the court, and Arabelle quickly studied the people on the other side of the net. A volleyball player and a tall ginger who was all geared up for the game. "I haven't really played volleyball before. Got any idea how to?" Regardless of the girl's answer, Arabelle would toss the ball to her friend with a sheepish smile. "You serve first. I'll try to learn from watching. Good luck~!"

[Hazado 0]

As the girls got ready for some volleyball, Hazado looked for a spot to sit down at. As he took out a towel to lay on next to the field where the girls were playing.  Interesting matchup here, Embers And Froppy do a little bit of an advantage, Embers being even taller than me and Froppy with her other special weapon. As he crossed his legs. Looking around where @Grimm is, seeing Grimm not far away he waved him over to come and sit next to him to watch the girls play volleyball. "Oi, Grimm Get yourself over here. The girls are about to play their little volleyball game." Hoping Grimm heard him.

As he heard the water he saw the other shy boy that called himself @Pinball go into the water, clearly not wanting to do anything with the group. Not a big fan of big groups I think.  Not knowing what to do he stood up from his towel and walked over to the bar where the little green haired girl was doing the drinks. "Just give me... well anything that is a cold drink feels good around now @Fae," He said clearly waiting for Grimm to come over as well and grab a drink with him.

[Pinball 1]

The salty seawater was unpleasant, but at the same time, strangely refreshing. Pinball found he could hold his breath a surprisingly long time, and when he opened his eyes underwater, it didn't sting as it did in real life. Still, the water was murky, and he couldn't see very far, but the fact that he could was exhilerating. Pinball sunk lower and lower into the water until he hit the sea floor, where he sat, watching wide-eyed at his surroundings. Fish occasionally darted here and there, but he couldn't spot anything that looked worth fighting for the life of him. Maybe the more dangerous mobs are further out, he thought, air bubbles rising to the surface. He was running out of breath. Pinball sat with his legs folded, his hair loose and flowing with the current. The sun hit the bottom here, but he wondered just how deep the ocean was further out into the floor. I'm out of air, he thought, and he swam back up, taking a deep breath. His hair stuck to his face, and he could barely see through the thick black locks. He started to swim closer to shore, pushing the wet hair to the side. 

[Spangie 0]

The poor girl sweat dropped. Volleyball skills, don't fail me now.. "Eheh.. Uhh. Just don't let the ball touch the ground and let it touch their ground?" she pointed over to the other side of the net. Good advice Spangie. She mentally face palmed herself and grabbed the ball form wherever it was. Exhaling and inhaling, she backed up a bit. Okay.. It's coming back, i think I know how to serve. You just throw it up and hit it. Just like Pa taught me, she gulped and gripped the ball tighter. Well.. She glanced from left to right at the several spectators. You can't embarrass yourself that bad.. They might be skilled but theres still hope right? Right.. she sighed and held her gaze on the other side. 1.. 2.. She threw the ball high into the air. 3! As soon as the ball was a bit higher than eye level, she threw her hand forward, letting it arch above the net and onto the other side. "I did it..? Phew, I feel like I'm gonna pass out.." she sighed an relief and got into a ready stance. Yup, just like Pa and I practiced. Just like we practiced..

@Arabelle @Froppy @Embers

Edited May 4, 2018 by Spangie

[Froppy 0]

Tsu nodded when @Embers said that there was no one better than her at moving quick. "Alright then, let's win this game then, ribbit. We got this, with my tongue and your speed, we can for sure win, rrrrrrribbit!" Tsu crossed her arms and watched as @Arabelle and @Spangie got into position on the court. Spangie tossed the ball up and served it over the net, to which Tsu jumped and hit the ball back over with her tongue, directing it towards Arabelle. It felt a little bit unfair just using her tongue, but Tsu didn't want to just use her hands, since she was the shortest one playing right now. That fact was also something she definitely didn't want to admit either. The sun shined down on the game, and it just added to the fun vibe of this. Fae did mention a swimsuit contest, which Tsu wasn't really looking forward too, but everything else had the potential to be fun.

[Arabelle 0]

Don't let the ball touch their ground. Let the ball touch the other team's ground. But I already knew that! Arabelle whined inwardly. She could imagine herself pulling at her cheeks in frustration. Gosh, why had she even said she could play volleyball if they needed a slot filled? That was a bad decision. Very bad decision. "Alright," she managed, stretching her arms. As if that would help against the experienced volleyball player on the other side of the net.

The small girl watched as @Spangie served the ball, taking note of the blonde's movements. She followed the volleyball with her eyes as it soared over the net. Okaaay... Then @Froppy caught it, and now it was soaring over the net going back to their side. Arabelle didn't miss the fact that Tsu directed it at her instead of Angie. Target the weakest link. Smart choice. She held her arms out in front of her, imitating her teammate's stance, and stumbled backward. The volleyball made contact with her forearms and she hit the ball upward. And she watched it soar up...and up...until it landed on her team's ground. Arabelle's face turned red as she looked over at Angie, hoping the girl would give her tips.

@Embers

[ooc: sorry Spangie! Bella's inexperienced with volleyball, so it makes the most sense for her to screw up.]

[Embers 0]

Embers watched the two girls on the other side of the net, and a slight grin appeared. Even from where she stood, she could tell that that neither of them felt comfortable playing. Neither did she, but they didn’t have to know that as she smiled. She spied the ball go up into the air and start coming towards their side, and the girl took a step forwards. That was, right as Tsu handled it with her tongue. Firing at the other girl.

But in all, Embers had noticed one thing. The girls on the side side, Arabelle and Spangie, used similar stances when hitting the ball. Embers couldn’t help but wonder if that’s how you’re meant to play this game? Of course, Embers wasn’t able to find out as the return shot didn’t make it over.

“Round 1 to us” She said, despite having done nothing to win it. It was then that Embers realized she had little idea of how the scoring in volleyball worked, and looked forwards at Tsu “How do you win this thing anyhow?”