[PP-F1] A new day (Asakku, Räv) {Complete}

[Rav 0]

The sun was peeking over the horizon as Räv started his walk to the quiet café ne so often frequented. It seemed that very few woke at this hour, though he wasn’t surprised. In the real world he had a habit of waking up before the sun to train. Now, however, he woke to walk around and eat breakfast in one of the many café's on the first floor. He found it a good time to reflect on the past and plan for the future. He wondered how long he would be stuck in this game, how hard it would be to get out. He yearned for Felicity, though he knew she would be sending to him while he was trapped in the game. It was so odd to picture this place, hard to grasp in a real sense. Though he did not care for the philosophy as Wind had. It dawned on him that Wind was trapped somewhere in the game too. Perhaps Räv could finally overtake his former partner in terms of skill. 

Räv was walking absentmindedly, as he thought. He wore a suit and tie, his normal clothing when not in armor. He adjusted his glasses as he looked to the sky. “Looks like it’s going to storm.” He said before opening the café door. The sky was darkening and clouds were rolling in.
@Asakku

Edited July 1, 2018 by Rav

[Asakku 0]

Asakku was sitting aimlessly at a booth at a small cafe she never particularly went to. Arias isn't here and it's sort of boring without him.. she sighed, poking the animal skull in front of her. Ugh, I'm going to need some kind of chain, I don't want to carry this crap every time he's gone, the crimson eyed player gave an inaudible scoff and pressed her scarf closer to her face. What does he even do when he's in there? Does he just chill out? God, I need to ask him these things. She intertwined her fingers together and rested her chin on her knuckles as she went into thought. Can he move into other shadows when he's already in mine? Or does he have to get out before he goes into another one? Agh, all these questions make my head hurt. She raked her hand down her hair and let out a tired yawn. How much did i sleep last night, I don't even know anymore.. 

@Rav

[Rav 0]

Räv entered the café, immediately scanning the area as he walked in. There was a new face he was unaccustomed to. The person seemed to be sitting in front of some sort of animal skull. It was odd, though he didn’t want to make a judgement. He noticed that she was in the booth where he normally sat. He shrugged and walked to the counter to make an order. “One bowl of brown sugar oatmeal, with honey and assorted nuts on the side please.” The man behind the counter nodded as if he already knew what the order would be and gave Räv a receipt before going to start working on the meal. Räv turned to sit down and shrugged, coming to the conclusion that he had nothing to lose, and he hadn’t really made any acquaintances yet. 
He approached the woman. “Hey, I don’t mean to come across as creepy, but do you mind if I sit across from you? You seem… intriguing" while he believe this outspokenness to be somewhat characteristic of him, he chose to go through this anyways to see what happened. 
@Asakku

[Asakku 0]

Asakku gave a raised brow at the man but shrugged it off and gave him a small wave, "I suppose so," she mumbled, resting her chin on her palm. Her eyes were quick to examine him, intriguing.. his eyes need to be fixed. She glanced in another direction, pushing Orias' skull closer to her. He doesn't look that hight leveled.. but neither do I so I don't have much to say.. she sighed tapping her free hand on the cool surface of the table. Why did Orias have to go right now? Can't a familiar spend at least a morning with his own master? She huffed in irritation, keeping her eyes trained on the ceiling. 

Why am I here again? Breakfast isn't something I usually do, she stole a quick glance at here skinny arms. Maybe it was to get out.. I don't even know anymore, she sighed, blinking away her tiredness.

@Rav

[Rav 0]

“Thank you" Räv said, bowing to her before he sat down. He pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose as they had fallen slightly when he sat, while he did this he noticed the woman pull the strange skull closer to her. He had not gotten a very clear look at the skull yet, he was curious as to what animal it came from and why she held it so close. “I should introduce myself. I am Räv, it is a pleasure to meet you.” Räv paused, “I haven’t seen you here before, what brings you to this café?” Räv was never the best at small talk, though he was curious as to the woman. She seemed quite unique after all. He couldn’t say it was too weird however, perhaps she was religious and that skull was some sort of symbol of her faith. Then again Räv couldn’t recall seeing an animal skull in the game before. After all, every time something was killed it shattered into colourful pieces. 
The sky darkened outside the window. The rain would start any minute now. Perhaps he would practice his climbing later. Grip was important so being able to get grip when buildings and trees were wet would be good practice. 
@Asakku

[Asakku 0]

She gave him a simple nod, “you’re welcome.” Muttering a few incoherent curses under her breath, she sighed, giving small shakes of her head. I can’t beleive Orias left me here with his frekin’ skull. He’s probabaly dozing off, doing whatever he wants and when he wants when I’m here with bored practically drawn on my face! Nearly missing what he said, she looked up and put on her neutral face, “Asakku, likewise,” she inhaled a sharp breath, “Yeah, well I don’t go here often, I was planning to get some food but I guess I lost my appetite,” she replied, looking him dead in the eyes. He’s thinking about he skull, who doesn’t think of that when they first see it? 

She blinked briefly and held the skull up with her pointer finger. “You’re probabaly thinking about this,” she raised a brow, hoping she was right, “it’s my familiars, so don’t think I go hunting for animals just for their skulls,” she sighed, dropping it back onto the table, “frankly, I’ve never heard of poachers in this game, but if there were, I’d look a hell lot like one.”

@Rav

 

[Rav 0]

Räv watched her and noticed that she seemed tired. “Are you sure you aren’t hungry? It’s not good to go through the day on an empty stomach. Plus it might help you wake up. I’ll even pay for it, seeing as I am putting you through the trouble of talking to someone unfamiliar to you.” Räv never understood people who didn’t eat breakfast. Then again he acknowledged that he tended to train all day and needed that energy boost. Not to mention that a good breakfast could last till dinner when he was on long missions and couldn’t eat lunch. 
Räv tilted his head slightly in thought as the woman, who he now knew was named Asakku. “I was thinking about that skull, mostly because it intrigues me. I didn’t think you were a poacher, though I feel that poaching wouldn’t be profitable in this game seeing as you can’t really…” Räv paused out of habit when the waiter came over and dropped off his oatmeal. He did not start talking again until the waiter was out of earshot. “...skin a dead monster in this game. You said it’s a familiar, I can’t say I’ve seen a familiar that is just a skull before. That’s kind of cool in my opinion.”

@Asakku

[Asakku 0]

She shook her head, “no I’m not. I’m.. used to not having breakfast. You don’t have to pay for anything,” Asakku raises her hands, not wanting to waste anyone’s time because of her. She sighed, “I’m just not a morning person I guess,” she mumbled and punched the bridge of her nose. 

It was her turn to tilt her head as he paused himself when the waiter came. Whatever, it’s not something I should be paying attention to. Goving the waiter a quick glance, she turned her head back to him. “Yeah I suppose so, but it’s not like the things can’t respawn, if they didn’t, that would be a different story.“ Shaking her head, she pointed at the skull, “Yeah, Räv was it?   My Familiar isn’t the skull itself, he wears it. Most would say his face isn’t very nice to the eye, so I decided for him to wear this,” she gestured over to the skull, “it was lying dead in the ground so I’m not asking any questions about that.”

@Rav

[Rav 0]

Räv mixed a heap of honey into his oatmeal as he listened to Asakku talk.
 Interesting, so she found the skull on the ground  and it helped shield others from her familiars face. He through to himself, mentally recanting what was just told to him. I wonder how common that is. 
“I doubt there would be many grinders if the monsters in this game acted like humans in the sense that if you die in game you die forever,” he said as he added the assorted nuts. “I agree it would be a much different game." Räv paused  “I am not trying to be disrespectful by any means, but you seem to be only slightly higher leveled than myself, if even that. Though looks can be deceiving. If you wouldn’t mind me asking, how much experience do you have in this game?” Räv took a bite from his oatmeal after asking the question. He could feel the warmth heating his face as he swallowed. This was why he enjoyed oatmeal, the brilliant flakes could be flavored like anything and they always gave him a warm feeling when he was eating them. When you lived somewhere cold as he did, it was nice to start your day off with something warm and eating oatmeal reminded him of home. 
Räv thought for another moment before speaking. “I’m not trying to sound creepy, but it’s really nice to have someone to talk to in the morning. I would eat with my bodyguard when I woke up in the real world, though I haven’t gotten to experience that social interaction sense beginning this game. I appreciate it.”
@Asakku

[Asakku 0]

She glanced at her shadow, mentally scowling at her familair, you see what you have make me go through Orias? Ugh. Focusing back on Räv, she gave a shrug, “dying forever doesn’t seem that bad. I personally would rather be dying in here than in real life,” she commented, fidgeting with the gems of her scarf as she did so. She looked up at him with a neutral face, “not much, enough to know what’s going at least,” she shrugged again, this time tapping her heels against the ground. 

She took his sentences into thought before opening her mouth, “Yeah, at least you had someone to eat with,” she chuckled bitterly, rolling her eyes at the reply she just gave. “I suppose so..” she paused for a heartbeat, “bodyguard, huh? Aren’t you Mr. Popular?” She smirked, “so what did you do for a living? You look young so I don’t expect a CEO of a huge enterprise.”

@Rav

Edited June 29, 2018 by Asakku

[Rav 0]

Räv continued eating while he listened to her replies. He chuckled when she made a comment about him being popular and pondered the best way to respond for a moment. “No, I’m not a CEO or anything like that. And my bodyguard doesn’t have anything to do with my job. You see I saved her from a human trafficking group. She was born into the trade so she only knew how to act in such a way that was by in servitude. So instead of sending her out on her own I offered her a place to live and work, should she do choose. She never left my side sense.” Räv paused and finished his oatmeal, his face darkened slightly as he thought. “Though, that doesn’t answer your question does it? You asked me what I did for a living, perhaps the reason I chose for her to be a bodyguard and not a house maid or other servant.” Räv lowered his voice, “I killed people for a living, I come from a family of assassins, a very lucrative industry.” Räv knew this could only really go one of two ways. The first is that she flipped out and left, the second is that she stayed though he had yet to meet anyone other than  Felicity who stayed. He knew his job was distasteful in the eyes of most people. He fully accepted that. He fully accepted that he would be alone for the entirety of his life, with no friends outside the family. It was how the world worked for him, not that he had a problem with it.

@Asakku

[Asakku 0]

She listened intently, giving a small course smile as he did so, "human trafficking, huh.. you don't see that much where I live," she examined her nails before returning her gave back to him, "so did you train her to be your bodyguard? I suppose she wouldn't be very fit if she just came out of slave labor," she pondered, clasping her hands together and taking the situation into consideration. "But she seems very loyal, thats for sure," she commented, checking her shadow once again, not even a stir, wow. Aren't you just the greatest familiar? She sighed inwardly before resuming back to listening. "Oh, you killed for living? Interesting.." she held a curious smirk on her face, "what a job.. I would sign up right away.." she paused for a second, 
"but I was never really that fit in the real world," she pointed to her skinny arms. "But hey, you never know." She shrugged and bit her lip, "death isn't a surprise to me just so you know. It's a thing everyone goes through.. but others go through it earlier than expect is the way I would put it." 

@Rav

 

[Rav 0]

Räv nodded “Yeah, I thought her about what to do and trained her. She is very loyal but I fear that is because she feels in debt to me. I’m currently attempting to break her of her feeling of debt to no avail.” He listened to how the girl responded. He looked back on his missions. He remembered all of the fun times he had learning cultures and meeting people. He remembered the different walks of life so many people had taken. He heard Asakku's jealousy and smiled. “You would be surprised, I have seen girls smaller than you make excellent  assassins. My cousin Caroline was introduced into the family business at eleven years old, she was our top espionage assassin for a while.”

He paused and thought for a moment. “In fact, I could teach you what I know and when we are finally out of this mess, I could help you join my organization if you want. It would be nice to have a new apprentice. And don’t worry, just because I’m a marksman doesn’t mean I’m uneducated on the other forms of assassination.” He smiled at Asakku with a almost innocent smile. Lightning struck in the distance lighting up the sky, the thunder shaking the windows with its powerful boom.
@Asakku

[Asakku 0]

She tilted her head, "I bet she does, you basically saved her," she shrugged, toying with the tips of her hair. Taking her sentence into thought, she gave a small frown. I've never been in debt.. I mean, money wise, yes.. But being in debt to someone that doesn't concern money is new to me. She looked up at him and her mouth tilted downward, "yeah but you would be surprised how weak I am in real life, I'm underweight, malnourished and barely have any muscle, It's weird lifting up things I know I can't lift up in real life here," she sighed, but gave him a knowing glance, "but that is surprising. Eleven years old is pretty young to go off and kill people," pressing her chin on her knuckles, she gave a small groan, "agh, I would never wake up this early in real life either, this sucks balls."

She frowned at the thought of actually getting out of SAO, "I wouldn't be so sure on that, I'll probably be on house arrest for months," she shook her head and huffed, "so don't go looking for me, I would've honestly been honored to server milord," she joked for a second, "but sadly, my life isn't that easy."

@Rav

[Rav 0]

Räv chuckled at the mention of house arrest. “If you found yourself affiliated in a position light with my organization, I assure you that you will not need to worry about the law. We have a powerful hold on most nations and a substantial amount of expendable income.” Räv took some time to think before commenting on the rest. “I have to be honest with you, in terms of wealth and luxury I’ve had a very nice life. However in terms of what is look at as far as a family with love, I never really had that. I can’t say I understand where you come from but I would be happy to assist you should you need it. I may be a killer but I do have standards and morals, maybe not in the traditional sense of morals, but still. If you find yourself in need of anything let me know. And even if you are malnourished, should you get to a point either on your own or with help where you aren't still finding yourself without food or without appetite, you will be in the prime position of muscle growth.” Räv gave her a sympathetic smile, took a sip of water, and adjusted his glasses. “You might find it easier to be awake this early if you ate something, are you sure you don’t want me to get you anything? I also wont take back my apprenticeship offer, you have potential to do very well.”

@Asakku

[Asakku 0]

Asakku kept her mouth shut while he was talking, and when he was, she didn't even know where to begin. "it's not the law thats putting me in house arrest," she scoffed, glancing in another direction, "no law can hold back this girl," giving in to a bitter chuckle, she looked back at him. "Wish I could say the same, but join the club, looks like we both have a crappy family," she mumbled, leaning back into her chair and fidgeted with her nails. "I'm not going to lie, it's both. I'm never hungry anyways so the other part doesn't concern me as much as it sounds like it should." Pulling her arms back, she slouched further into her seat. "I don't even know anymore," she sighed, looking up at the ceiling.

Shaking her head once again, "no. The hunger in this game is artificial anyways, it's not going to make me any more full in real life anyways," she frowned, but gave a simple shrug, "whatever you say, don't be too disappointed though."

@Rav

 

[Rav 0]

Räv just smiled at the girl. “Don’t worry, you wont disappoint me one way or another. You seem very capable on your own! I only brought it up because my of the jealousness I saw in your eyes when I mentioned my profession. To be honest it caught me a little off-guard.” He chuckled before finishing his water. The rain was hitting harder now, he wondered how long they had been talking, he never really was able to estimate the passage of time while it was raining. “I think you have what it takes to accomplish whatever goal you have in this game. Make the most of it while you can, this is the only time you can really do what you want, no matter how vile, without vast repercussions. One day this game will end. Maybe that will be due to the last person alive dying. I doubt it though. In my opinion it is more likely that this game will be completed one day, on that day we will return to our former lives, no matter how re gf regretful they might be. I will most likely attempt to figure out who you are and contact you when that time comes, even though you warned me not to. I feel like I can consider you a friend after all, someone who understands where I’m coming from to some extent. I don’t get that very often.”

@Asakku

[Asakku 0]

She chuckled, waving her hand, "Pftt. Me? Jealous? Yeah, no way buddy. The day I become jealous is the day hell freezes over," she shook her head, "yeah, I tend to catch a lot of people off guard. Because.." she leaned in closer and whispered with one hand covering her left part of her face, "I'm not very social, comes with the package," she slid back into her seat and put her hands behind her head and sighed. "A friend? Wow, am I honored," she took another quick glance at the dark shadow under the table, for [beep] sakes Orias. I know you're hearing every inch of this conversation. She mumbled a few incoherent curses and returned her orbs to Rav, "I could say the same thing to be honest, who knew the first person I would get along with would be a person who kills for a living?" she rolled her eyes and gave a brief scoff, "but to be honest, I didn't think I would get along with anyone generally," she muttered, enjoying the loud rain pouring on the roof.

@Rav

[Rav 0]

Räv laughed a little. She doesn’t get jealous, huh? I guess everyone works slightly different. He thought. He shrugged when she said that she wasn’t the social type. “You seem to be fine talking to me… then again I’m not normal by any means so that may be the cause.” Räv reminisced on the solitude of his life thus far. Save for members of his family, extended family branches and Felicity, he didn’t really have anyone to regularly interact with, far less who bonded with him over such things as assassinations and killings. “Well I’m glad I could be someone you find yourself able to get along with.” 
Räv loomed back out the window, remembering what his plans were for the day. Turning back to Asakku he said, “I will need to be heading out soon, I plan to do some training and monster hunting. You are welcome to join me if you would like, it would be nice to have a hunting partner again.”  He hadn’t gotten above the first level yet, too absorbed in physical training regiments from the real world to realize he was getting nowhere fast. Just the other day he finally realized if he wanted to beat Wind he would need to start hunting monsters or else he would be in a bind when it came time for his search.
@Asakku

[Asakku 0]

She slumped farther into her seat, "you're more normal than most of the people I've met, except your job. You're the first," she chuckled, giving a small yawn. Jesus, how much did I even sleep yesterday, this sucks balls. She rubbed her cheek and looked up at him with a tilted smile. "Another first," she sighed, rubbing the back of her neck. Tapping her hell on the wooden floor, she took another small glance at the tables shadow, I'm really starting to think he wandered off somewhere without telling me, "stupid wolf," she mumbled, crossing her arms with an annoyed scoff.

Rubbish her chin, she gave a reluctant nod, "sure, I haven't gone hunting in a while. Much less actually attack something," she muttered the last sentence bitterly, but gave a shrug. "but yeah, I'd be willing to go anytime, it's not like I have anything else to do." Come to think of it.. I only did that quest with Mr. No Morals and somethin' else, ugh I forgot. 

@Rav