[PP - F4] Our Sour Song (Mina and Morgenstern) Complete!

[tricolor_mina 0]

Mina was still slightly dazed from her tumble, though she still managed to pull herself up from her position on the floor. She looked up again, the room was somewhat blurry, just like it always was when she woke up like that, which was almost every night. Every time they just seemed to get worse, no matter what she did. It was part of why she refused to even sleep nowadays. She didn't have anyone that could pull her out of them with any kind of ease, or even make them go away entirely. She supposed that was just the side effect of what had happened to her. It didn't matter too much, as she spotted Jon coming closer, causing her to instinctively recoil away into the corner, her face suddenly becoming fearful. "Please no! G-ge-get away from me!" she whimpered, cowering backwards, her mind unable to comprehend that she wasn't still in the nightmare. "P-please don't hurt me..!" she flinched, and shut her eyes when he extended his hand out to her... until she heard him asking whether or not she was ok. 'If I was still in that nightmare, he wouldn't be asking about my safety..!' her eyes shot open, before she let out a sob and launching herself forward, and letting out a broken wail as she buried her head in his chest. "I'm not ok! I haven't been ok for almost 6 years!" she sobbed, clinging pathetically to Jon.

[Morgenstern 1]

When she recoiled from him, he flinched, feeling a knife being thrust through his heart. The moment was almost temporarily as she seemed to understand it was him. She lurched forward, clinging to him, sobbing. "I'm not ok! I haven't been ok for almost 6 years!" He would wrap his arms around her, closing his eyes. His right hand would reach up the the top of her head where he would hold it. "Tell me. Tell me everything, release every bit of pain that you have stored up within you. I can take it."  He wouldn't let her go. He understood what it was like to feel like that. He knew what it was like to push away the rest of the world and hide your pain. He knew what it was like to hope that everyone would close their eyes and turn away, and ignore what they had become. 

"You need to learn that you can't help others if you yourself need help. Don't try to fix me, when you are far more broken than me. You asked what was wrong with, me but didn't mention anything at all about these nightmares that you've been having." 

[tricolor_mina 0]

Mina just sat there, trembling in his arms, her eyes shut tightly as the tremors wracking her body along with her sobs slowly began to die down as her panic seemed to fade away. She felt even more guilty than she did earlier after essentially lying to him about it. ".. I di-didn't say anything about them b-because I can't get rid of them..!" she said weakly, still clinging to Jon. "What reason would I have to bring u-up something that couldn't be fixed..? It's just my mind endlessly torturing itself with the things that it remembers, and there's not a thing I can do to fix it aside from putting up a mask to hide it away. It's the only thing that's been keeping me together for these past few years." she looked up with guilty eyes. "I'd rather help others fix their own pain and problems where it is fixable, than just try to fix something broken that hasn't been reparable for almost a Decade." she said, her face filled with grief. "And I'm so, so sorry for what I did earlier, I had absolutely no right to do that to you. You must hate me over that, don't you..?" her grip loosened, as she seemed to slowly relax, though her facial expression still remained the same despite the pangs of emotion rushing through her mind.

[Morgenstern 1]

Her trembles almost shook his entire body before he sobs began to slowly come to an ease as she seemed to escape from the nightmare that had troubled her so much. She mentioned that she couldn't get rid of her nightmares. She was just being constantly tortured herself over things that had happened in the past almost a decade before. She looked up, her eyes guilty and filled pain that was matched only by his previously. "I'd rather help others fix their own pain and problems where it is fixable, than just try to fix something broken that hasn't been reparable for almost a Decade." He shook his head. "Even if you haven't been able to rid yourself of your pain, that doesn't mean no one else can. You aren't going to fix yourself with that mask. You're just covering up the pain, the breaking down." Her face still remained with grief, her worried over him hating her. "I couldn't hate you. However, I ask that you don't put up your mask anymore. You're just going to hurt me more and more everytime you do. I'll help you face your pain, fix it. Just let me know what happened. I opened my demons to you, its time for you to do the same."

"I want to have feelings for someone real. Not the mask they put on to hide who they really are." 

[tricolor_mina 0]

Violet shuddered when Jon mentioned that she needed to be honest, and fully open up to him. she pulled back a bit from him, curling up sightly into a ball, though she was still looking up at him. "I will... just.. please don't treat me any differently..." she said sadly, resting her chin on her knees.

"It started 7 years ago, when I was 20 years old, and I first came to the states. I was fresh out of a police academy, and enjoying life just like any reasonable young adult would be at that time. I lived in Los Angeles, working for one of the local police stations as a Negotiator, doing my best to work with everyone to prevent as many deaths as possible. I met one of my closest friends there, someone whom I felt that was the brother that I wish I had. His name was Declan Cian. We became fast friends when we were working together, and we'd chill out with each other at our houses, playing video games, watching movies, or going to the park with his wife and kids. It was... oddly idyllic now that I think of it. It hardly even really matters now though." she took a deep breath, her body starting to shake slightly again. "Then, not even a year later, I was driving home on a motorcycle that I bought a while back, just enjoying the afternoon air, and how the wind felt on my face. A truck came flying out of nowhere, hitting the tail end of my bike, and sending both myself and it flying." Her hand traced the scar on the left side of her face. "I lost the ability to see out of this eye, and some heavy scarring to boot. I was in the hospital for a little over two months due to other injuries that they were uncomfortable about me wandering about with. When I was discharged, Declan and his wife both helped me out tremendously. They kept me fed, they helped me with laundry and kept me company while I was recovering."

"They mostly kept me off of the field after that, due to the nature of my injuries I would have been an extreme liability, and I could have gotten killed had I ever been put in a violent situation. Regardless of this, I kept my head held high, and continued to work just as hard as I did before. Then, that fateful day when it happened came... The day that Declan was murdered by a group of gang members. We were forced to do an all call due to a massive shootout between three separate gangs, and also due to the fact that they had hostages." she paused, before holding up eight fingers. "Eight of us... that's how many died. My boss was shot in the head, killing him instantly... Declan didn't get as lucky as he did. He was shot in the chest, and I held him in my arms as his own lifeblood choked the life out of him. I... I, for lack of a better term, went berserk on the gangs, firing a pistol till it was empty, before snatching up another and I just... kept going. My mind was just on autopilot at the time, and the only thing that crossed it was Make them Suffer for what they did." she glanced down at her hands, a blank look on her face. "When I got home, I found myself waking up screaming and in a cold sweat from my first nightmare. I was able to function for a while, and I did great for the most part, up until about two years before SAO launched. I was still functioning for the most part, aside from the ever-increasing nightmares, and I was still showing up in public. Until I had a breakdown, and just stopped leaving my house, curled up in a ball and sobbing. The only things I did to take care of myself then, was shower, eat, use the bathroom, and sleep if I felt able to do so. Even now, Its just been getting worse. I barely sleep or eat, and now instead of strangers, I just see people I care about getting hurt..."

She lapsed into silence after that, staring at the floor. She didn't want to see how Jon reacted to her story. 

[Morgenstern 1]

The girl ripped herself from him, curling herself up with her heard resting upon her knees. She seemed terrified for some reason, a reason he didn't quite yet understand. She looked up at him, her eyes pleading. "I will... just.. please don't treat me any differently..." He nodded his head. "I don't plan on it" 

She would start her story off sounding good, a young girl straight out of the academy, doing her job and enjoying life. A friend by the name of Declan whom she shared many hours of fun with. Than her story took a sudden shift as she mentioned being hit by a truck, her flying with her motorcycle, losing half of her vision and the cause for the scars on her face. She had spent two months in the hospital, recovering from this wreck. Her friend Declan and his wife had helped her through the recovery, which was very nice in his opinion. He never really had any friends in the real world other than a few, but he knew that if his father had cared for someone and something like that would have happened, he would have just paid someone to do it. Money changed everything. 

She went on about how one day, her entire department was called in to reprimand a gang shootout, but it had not been very successful. Her boss, Declan, and six other people had died in that operation alone. She told him that she went berserk, firing and killing until none left stood. That's when the nightmares started, progressively getting worse until it reached a point that she couldn't leave her own house anymore. 'I'm Surprised they didn't send her someone to help her out mentally after the incident? Did she just tell them all that she was fine?' She was now looking down at the floor, most likely trying to hide herself from him. 

"So other than these Nightmares, I'm not seeing a problem. If you're worried about what you did at the shootout, It seems to me like you were doing your job, even if you let your emotions get in your way. I'm really sorry about your friend, and I am sad to say that there is no way to change that. Sometimes even the best people are lost." He would smile, crouching down to Mina's level on the floor. "If you still feel guilty about what happened to the gang, someone recently told me that Repentance is good and that we all need it. Nobility of character isn't being better than someone else, it's being better than we were yesterday. In the meantime, we can work on your nightmares, there is a fix out there somewhere, we just have to look hard enough to find it. For now, we'll try facing the problems instead of covering them up, except this time I'll be here to help you." 

He held his hand down for her to take so that he could help her up. 

[tricolor_mina 0]

Violet let out a quiet sound of frustration when he said it might just be guilt over what happened, which was incorrect aside from the fact that she deeply regretted not being able to save her friend and her boss. That was the only thing about it she regretted. She certainly didn't regret killing the people that had taken the lives of at least 15 others prior to their arrival, though. She was startled out of her thoughts when she realized Jon was looking at her, a smile on his face. His other statement was more or less a rehashing of what he'd said before, though he did at least say he'd help her work through them instead of just focusing on hiding it away like she always did. It made a warmth blossom in her chest, slowly killing the chill that had been radiating throughout her. 'That was the first time that anyone has ever said they'd help me with this, aside from Rosa..!' she thought,  her shock changing to a warm smile that lit up her face. "... Thank you..!" she said softly, taking his hand as he extended it out to help her up. Once they'd both stood up, she placed her hand on the side of his face, a loving look on her face. "I... I think I still owe you something from last time, ne..?" she moved forward slightly, her mouth meeting his, and staying there for several seconds.

Meanwhile, Rosa had snuck out of the room to grab several bottles of wine, and finish preparing a freshly baked chocolate cheesecake, adding a drizzle of white chocolate (Something that she'd had a difficult time making, as the required ingredients were pretty rare, though not unattainable), and producing a few plates of food, since she figured that after all of that, they hadn't even gotten the chance to enjoy everything. She'd even produced an entire pot of Ragout Rabbit stew just for them, though she did serve some from other pots of it to the other patrons of the bar. There were also several dinner rolls, and a few other dessert items that she had laid out, though they were placed slightly back, as she did want them to eat actual food first. She set the cheesecake within an opaque dessert holder, and placed the other dessert items within their respective holders, before heading back into the other room to get them. "Hey, lovebirds!" she said, a grin on her face. "I got something ready for you two while you two were working out your issues, and I don't want it all to go to waste, so head back out here in a minute ok?" she headed back out of the room, to continue to speak with her Orange-cursor'd patrons, and strike a few deals with them.

[Morgenstern 1]

She took his hand, her face warming from the first time since she woke. He brought her up from her seated position until she was standing. She placed her hand on his cheek, gazing up at him with an adoring look. "I... I think I still owe you something from last time, ne..?" He cocked is head, confused. "You do? I don-" Her lips pressed onto his, a shock sending through his entire body. A wave of warm passion passed over him, fading when she pulled away from him. "Wow" he stated simply. His gaze didn't shift form her own until he heard Rosa speak, him having forgotten that she was there in the first place. "Hey, lovebirds!" The blond practically jumped out of his body. His face reddened as he turned to the woman. "Uh huh?" "I got something ready for you two while you two were working out your issues, and I don't want it all to go to waste, so head back out here in a minute ok?" He nodded and looked back to Violet. 

"Eat and drink, its all I do huh? Trying to fatten me up so I can't get away?" he said in a joking tone. He grabbed a dinner roll from the platter, ripping it in half and offering the other half up to the girl. "Interesting that I've never noticed this bar. Bars like these are the best place to get information on other players." 

[tricolor_mina 0]

Mina blushed a bright red at Rosa's loud interruption, not expecting the older woman to actually embarrass the both of them like that. she put her face in her hands as she meekly followed Jon, before looking surprised at a gruff looking player sitting on the other end of the bar, talking in a hushed, worried voice to Rosa, who looked rather... infuriated, at whatever news the man was giving her. Mina heard Jon talk about how bars like this were the best places to get information of any kind, which had her looking to the ground as she nibbled on the half of a bread roll he'd handed her, a nervous feeling entering her mind for the first time ever since she'd gotten used to being in a bar like this. "It's good for information, sure... but the players that come here tend to be of the less reputable type that you wouldn't normally go to for that.." she said quietly, looking over at Rosa and the Gruff player. "Looks like Rosa might be about to go hunt someone down with her guild, that's the only reason I could think that she'd have that look on her face for any reason." mina shuddered at the thought of it. Rosa might not have personally killed anyone, but the same can't be said of her fellow guildmates, though they exclusively went after orange players that had murdered in cold blood, and those that might have hurt her "Family". It made her wonder how the older woman lived in the real world, if she was that willing to take down other human beings in such a manner. Mina grabbed one of the wine bottles, the label denoting it as Dragon's tooth wine, one of her favorites made by Rosa. She reached over the counter, and grabbed a large mug, before pouring nearly half of the bottle in it, and downing half of the glass in one go, her face turning slightly red due to the spice of the wine. At least it had gotten rid of the chill she'd been feeling. "Christ that stuff burns!" she muttered, setting it on the counter. "It tastes so damn good though, no wonder she sells out really fast!"

[Morgenstern 1]

He was glad to see that Violet was as flustered as he was. It was kind of embarrassing to say in the least that he had gotten attached that easily. There was a nag in the back of his mind that they were moving far too fast for their own good. They moved out into the main area where Rosa seemed to be having a serious conversation with some gruff man, Mina whispering to him that they were going to hunt someone down. His face took a worried expression. "Hunt someone? Like-" He gulped. 'Like I did? The weeks spent with the Red Claw as one of their leaders. Group hunts for players who had crossed Chaos. That was me.' His eyes shifted towards the gruff man and Rosa. 'What have I just wandered into? Did I just step into a murderers den? Is Rosa the mastermind behind it all and she has Mina at her fingertips?'

He looked over at Mina, who was no drinking from the wine and drinking from it, her face reddening as she drank the burning liquid. "Hey" he stated plainly. He stepped forward towards Rosa and the man. "Just who are you hunting?" the voice in the back of his hand told him that he was in no place to ask such questions with what he has done. His katana wasn't at his side, but he still felt like even if it came down to it, he could jail them right here. 'Would it be worth losing Mina over? I could turn a blind eye... or is that my Greed talking again?' 

[tricolor_mina 0]

Mina was too busy indulging in her drink to even notice that Jon had walked off at first. She was lost in thoughts, pleasant ones at that. One of Rosa's guildmates approached her, and sat down next to her. "I think that's the first time I've seen that look on your face, sunshine." the man snickered, grinning at Violet. "Mou, so what? I can smile if I want to ya jerk!" she said, gently punching the man's arm. "Anyways, what's got Rosa all worked up, Kuran? She looks pretty damn mad.." the newly named Kuran let out a huff, a scowl replacing his grin fairly quickly. "Someone attacked and killed one of our guild mates, and she's currently baying for blood over it." mina paled at the news, looking over at Rosa, Fengor, and... "What the- JON?!" mina spluttered, nearly choking on her drink as her eyes went wide. Kuran winced at the volume. "Easy kid, you're gonna blow my ears out!" he groaned, rubbing his head. "Why Is this dude going up to the boss like that? She might not be the most willing to attack, but he oughta know better than to piss off someone with tattoos, And visibly armed."

Meanwhile, Rosa was getting increasingly angry over what Fengor had described. One of the younger, newer recruits that were a part of her guild had been killed, and another had almost died, and apparently it was either a warning of some kind, or a declaration of war. "Damn the cursor system, I'll kill this Jackass myself If I get my hands on him!" she snarled, startling several people as she slammed her dagger into the bar, and causing it to warble and vibrate as the immortal object warning appeared along with a flurry of electric purple sparks. "I want you to take Shireen and Kuran, and go get the names from the monument of life Fengor. No one, and I mean NO ONE hurts my guild, my FAMILY like this!" she heard Jon approach her, and ask her who she was hunting. "A bunch of player killers that had the nerve to attack my guild, nothing more. If we catch this group though, they're dying by my hand for killing one of my own." she said curtly, her face darkening slightly. "Why the hell are you askin' me, actually? You don't strike me as the type of person that wants to get involved with stuff like this. Not to mention, we can't be thrown in jail for defending ourselves. its not like we're attacking innocent people, kid."

[Morgenstern 1]

He heard a cry of protest from Mina behind him, and a new guy asking what the hell he thought he was doing. He didn't know why, but he felt his anger rising just thinking about it. 'Why is it so hard for some players to understand when to shut their mouths? I'll piss off whoever I want to!' He shot the man behind him a warning glance, whether it to hold his tongue or to quit talking to Mina, he didn't know. His emotions were currently rattled. It seemed that his questions caused the angry Rosa to go on the defensive, stating how one of her own was killed and they were going to react in kind. It was a justifiable statement, he himself had gone after Chaos once he had attacked his guild. The problem would have resolved there, but she kept running her mouth. 

"Why the hell are you askin' me, actually? You don't strike me as the type of person that wants to get involved with stuff like this. Not to mention, we can't be thrown in jail for defending ourselves. its not like we're attacking innocent people, kid."

He was getting tired of Rosa, getting tired of her calling him kid. He was definitely getting tired of a player who wouldn't even stand a chance against him talking down to him. "Well, why don't you stop basing people off 'what they strike you as' and start listening for once. You might have heard about me, but you DON'T know who I am. Nobody does anymore, not even those that were closest to me." he opened his mouth to say more, but ti would end up causing more problems for himself and those around him. 'This girl is going to end up in some serious crap some day. She doesn't seem to have a clue about what she's doing. Kinda like how I was then.' 

He sighed and rolled his eyes. They didn't understand him at all. Violet didn't even know his story, and her intuition was far off point. He was literally part of the APD, even if it was more of a joke at this point. 

[tricolor_mina 0]

Rosa took in a deep breath to calm herself, before turning back to Fengor. "Like I said before, go grab shireen and Kuran, and get me those names from the monument" she said sharply, rubbing her head in frustration. "If you three think you can take care of it on your own, feel free to do so, just make sure that SOB Is listed on the monument after you complete the task." Fengor nodded at Rosa, before walking past Jon to go collect the Green haired teen next to violet, and a girl with snowy white hair, before all three of them walked out the door, letting it slam shut behind them. Rosa then turned back to Jon, sheathing her dagger inside of the scabbard pressed against the side of her ribcage. She pulled out a mug, before filling it with the contents of a crystalline bottle, filling it to the brim with a crimson red liquid. She took a large gulp of it, before she turned back to jon and fixed him with a blank look. "... you're younger than the age of 21, but older than 18. I didn't even need to ask around for that one due to the fact that, as you stated on numerous occasions, you aren't able to drink IRL, something violet mentioned offhandedly when I asked her about you. Your accent portrays you as an american, though I suppose it's possible that you might be an immigrant from a different country. You tend to introduce yourself as Jonathan or Jon, despite you having named your avatar 'Morgenstern', and you've displayed what seems to be a mild dislike of it, indicating a prior issue with it." She calmly stated, her eyes watching Jon carefully. "You have a younger sister that goes by the name of Penelo that followed you here, that was taken by the player Chaos. You were slain then brought back after the event on floor 13, alongside 2 of your peers at the T3 level, beat and shield, and two Tier 1 players, Violet, and a young girl by the name of sunova. I can actually keep going with the crap I know about you, but I dont think I need to. My point is, is that while I might not know your life story out of this hellhole, You know practically Nothing about me, aside from what little myself and Violet have mentioned to you. It's my job as an Info broker to get information about people. And just so you know, you don't strike me as Anything in particular, Jonathan, and I'm bein honest on that one. I base my opinions on someone off of how they act and treat their close friends, and to be honest, ya seem like a good person. And as an FYI, if you don't learn how to put up a proper poker face, someone's gonna use that against you real easily."

[Morgenstern 1]

He watched as Rosa seemed to ignore him for a moment, continuing her business with her guild before she would move to pull out a mug, filling it with a liquid, crimson in color. She would take a long, slow drink of it, before looking at him with a blank stare. She then stated exactly the information she had on him, all from the game. 

My point is, is that while I might not know your life story out of this hellhole, You know practically Nothing about me, aside from what little myself and Violet have mentioned to you. It's my job as an Info broker to get information about people. And just so you know, you don't strike me as Anything in particular, Jonathan, and I'm bein honest on that one. I base my opinions on someone off of how they act and treat their close friends, and to be honest, ya seem like a good person. And as an FYI, if you don't learn how to put up a proper poker face, someone's gonna use that against you real easily."

He shook his head. "You are confusing knowing about me, with knowing me. As for what I know about you, I know you're a lot like me. I am assuming you are the leader of this little group here, as you were the one calling the shots. You consider your guild your family, and will be willing to do anything, absolutely anything to protect them and keep them safe. I understand exactly what its like. Our difference is, I've been down the beaten path. I know what its like to lose them. Here's some info: Don't let your own emotions and actions put you and your family in jeopardy. You hunting down people is just going to cause a never ending war until you mess with the wrong people and then they take everything from you. Be careful." He looked at her, deep sorrow in his eyes. 

"Don't give up everything. The thing's I've broken. I see them wherever I go. And Because of that..." He trailed off for a minute, thinking deeply. 

"My only dream will never come true." 

He flashed the girl a smile before turning back to Violet. "Thanks for introducing me to your friends, but care to move on now? 'll walk you back to where you stay at the least." 

 "If you don't learn how to put up a proper poker face, someone's gonna use that against you real easily." He laughed. "I'll keep that in mind, Rosa." 

[tricolor_mina 0]

Rosa continued to drink from her glass as Jon processed what she said, before saying his own comments about what she had to say. She gently set her mug down, her eyes darkening slightly with sadness. "... I can't help but feel that part of that was the pot and the kettle, eh?" she mused, a sad smile on her face. "You've been down the beaten path for a short time, not long enough to understand what people who were born into it have gone through. I understand how you feel though, it's rough when you have to dirty your hands for any reason. Just... do yourself a solid and don't beat yourself up over it like you've been doing. It just leads you down a dark path." she noticed a notification in her menu, with the name of the person, and that they were hunting them down as she was getting and reading the message. When jon said he'd keep her advice on learning how to keep a poker face, and flashed a smile at her, she returned one of her own. "If you ever need anything, let me know, got it?" she said, giving him a mock salute. once he was over by mina, she muttered something under her breath, before letting her lighthearted smile drop, and walking off into another room to keep up the correspondence with her guildmates. 'The person who attacked my guild will learn not to mess with the Arbiter's Hand...' she thought venomously, before walking off into a back room, and shutting the door behind her.

Mina was nervously drinking her wine, waiting for Jon to come back as he had a very tense conversation with Rosa, after Fengor, Kuran, and Shireen left to go do god knows what. she shuddered inwardly, before taking a long swig of her drink, finishing it off as jon finally came back, after responding to what Rosa had said, and asked if he could escort her home. Mina looked down at her feet, a sigh escaping her throat. "I've been paying Rosa to let me stay in that room we were in earlier, so that kinda won't work out too well.." she said quietly, rubbing her head. "I was kinda worried she was gonna stab you earlier, though... I'm kinda surprised she actually let you say that to her,, normally she kicks people out when they butt into guild business... " she stared at the ground, a worried look on her face. "Though I do think she's kind of reckless for trying to go after people for killing someone, even if it was her own guildmate..."

[Morgenstern 1]

Rosa didn't seem to take much from his words of advice, and made it seem as if he were the one without experience in the broken path. 'You've were born into the Beaten Path huh? Well, if you think you are used to the Path'. She assured him that if he ever needed something to contact her. He would nod, knowing that there was a low chance he would never take up that offer. She would turn walking into another room and close the door behind her. 

As he spoke with Violet, she told him that she was actually staying in the bar. He blinked. "You're staying in a bar? That's gotta suck." he would state plainly, but the conversation seemed to trail off as Rosa took the spotlight of the conversation. "Reckless isn't even the beginning of it. She is picking fights with people, and some day she's going to pick the fight with the wrong player. Whether it be a player that is strong or a player with a lot of influence." He placed his hands behind his head. "She seems to be set on her ways and confident, so maybe she'll make it. She's got a good head on her shoulders, better than mine." 

He shifted towards the door. "So I guess I'll just take my leave them. I've been staying in an inn on the 19th floor." He used to have a house there, but he sold it so that he could change his skills to defeat Chaos. He planned on getting another one in the near future. He began to step towards the door, preparing to leave Riker's Edge. 

[tricolor_mina 0]

Mina let out a weak chuckle, an embarrassed look crossing her face. "Hey, at least the food is better than that crap the NPCs serve at the different NPC restaurants and diners!" She said, a faint pink blush dusting her cheeks "Besides that, Rosa usually... checks up on me, and wakes me up out of my nightmares when they're obvious..." she trailed off into silence when he reiterated that Rosa was being very reckless with her behavior, and apparently "picking fights" with other people, which had her shaking her head. "Rosa doesnt go out of her way to attack people just because they piss her off, she only does crap like this when she's been provoked..." she said quietly, her expression changing to worry within seconds. "She tends to act in the better interests of the people she cares for... I've never seen her do anything that would endanger someone innocent... not that you can consider the people that attacked her guild mates 'innocent', though." When jon commented that she had a good head on her shoulders, and that shed probably pull through in the end, mina found herself staring at the floor, a frown on her face. "She might have a better head on her shoulders than you, but that's pretty much from experience alone,  Jon. She's not the smartest or the most powerful, but she's lived long enough to experience alot of stuff. It's why people always look to older folk when they want to learn something that they cant figure out sometimes..." eventually jon mentioned that he was heading back to the hotel he was staying at, she offered a hand out to him. "If you dont mind, I'd like to walk back with you... if you're ok with that, that is." she said softly, a lopsided smile on her face.

[Morgenstern 1]

Violet appeared to be embarrassed.  about her living arrangement, but was quick to defend her friend by saying that she checked up on her and took care of her. He smiled. It was good to have friends that looked out for you. However, she didn't seem to like him saying that she was far too easily baited and said that Rosa only reacted when she was provoked. He kept the thought to himself that she seemed easy to provoke. "People are easily put in danger, even if you don't mean too." She mentioned that Rosa was just experienced and he just turned. 'Experienced in what regard? I've never lost someone I have loved so she's go that on me, but has she watched all of her dreams crumble in front of her? In this world, what is experience?' As he stepped forward towards the door, he heard her speak to him. "If you don't mind, I'd like to walk back with you... if you're ok with that, that is." He turned with a smile and took her hand. "Hmm, I suppose. Long as you stay awake for the entire trip. I don't feel like carrying you again today!" he said with a chuckle. He would push open the door to the bar, heading for the teleport gate. 

---

Time Skip

The inn was single story, but containing several rooms in a long row that players could stay in, paying for two weeks at a time if they wished it. He pushed open the door that led to his room, a decent sized room for an inn, containing a queen-sized bed, a small kitchen, bathroom, and even a desk which was cluttered with random articles about the recent happenings of the floors that he had been stocking up on to be able to understand what had been happening in Aincrad while he had been... busy. 

He let go of her hand as he entered the inn, yawning as he quickly moved over to organize the desk into a neat stack. "It's not much, but for now its home. I used to have a house not too far from here... but now I don't." he would tell Violet. He would step back towards her, smiling. "When am I going to be able to see you again?" he asked her. It probably was not good for him to be gone away from the frontlines, but a couple of days wouldn't be that bad for him. 

[tricolor_mina 0]

Violet smiled faintly at Jon when he said it was fine that she could walk back to the hotel with him. At least there wasn't any hard feelings still, which was definitely nice. When they arrived at the inn, she looked around the area as they walked over to his room. It was decently sized, and well equipped for an inn in a video game, that was for sure. there was a very cluttered desk, with quite a few newspapers scattered about on top of it, which she found a bit odd. 'Why would he need to be reading the Aincrad times..?' she thought to herself, her eyes focusing on the bolded titles of the papers. she smiled faintly, a twinkle in her eyes. "For an inn, its actually pretty great, Jon." she folded her hands behind her head,  looking around the room. "It's better than the dinky little place I found to move my shop into once I send the col to the cardinal." the place was pretty great, if a little tiny. She figured that having an actual shop where she could stay would work out great for her in the long run (Plus it made it easier for her to stay overnight and craft a whole bunch of stuff!), so she'd bought it on a whim when she saw that there was a mild discount on it, though it still was going to cost a good 35,000 col, which was a fair chunk of change. She smiled faintly at Jon when he asked when he'd see her again. "Whenever you'd like to to be honest. I don't really mind either way." she said softly, before hugging him from behind, mushing her face into his back. "If you want to see me again soon, just shoot me a message okay? I'll be more than willing to pay you a visit... or maybe I could stay her with you tonight, only if you want me to, of course.."

[Morgenstern 1]

"For an inn, its actually pretty great, Jon." he smiled in reaction. "I like the floor, it has got a lot of memories for me. The inn's are always pretty empty because it isn't a very popular floor. I think its.... 5,000 col for two weeks for staying? I think I have stayed for 3 weeks total though." he yawned, the day of emotions having made him tired. He took of his jacket, throwing it aside and allowing it to vanish as it entered his inventory. As he asked her when he would see her again, he would feel a warm embrace on his back. "Whenever you'd like to to be honest. I don't really mind either way." He would smile. She at least wanted to see him again. It would be nice to spend some time with people, he had been alone for so long. Well, he had Celestine, his icy white dragon familiar. However, the prideful beast liked to spend his time hunting while Jonathan wasn't fighting actual monsters. The dragon hunted the landscapes, freezing most things in its path. 

"If you want to see me again soon, just shoot me a message okay? I'll be more than willing to pay you a visit... or maybe I could stay her with you tonight, only if you want me to, of course.." His face became flushed almost instantly. Stay here? Like with him? He only had the bed so she would have to... share it with him. "Ummmm... yeah yeah you stay uh" he would say, his voice becoming higher and faster. He didn't know what to do this was all happening.... very fast. He really hoped she didn't want things, he wasn't ready for anything like that. He moved to sit on his bed, his eyes not meeting hers as his face remained bright red from embarassment. "It's already pretty late so Im going to go to sleep. You can... join me or whatever you want to do. " He opened his inventory, changing his date clothes to sweats which would materialize on him in a flash of blue light. Laying down on the side of the bed closest to the door, he would keep his eyes open, his heart racing far too fast for him to fall asleep until he knew that she was going to.