[PP-F4] Two Birds of a Feather <<Feeding the Enemy>>

[Iron_Lion 1]

[Lv. 10; HP 200; EN 20; R3 Dagger; 7 DMG; Hidden Blade {3 DMG}; Assassin's Armor {3 EVA}; Strange Sigil {3 ACC}, Inspection Lense {3 LD}; x1 TP Crystal, x1 Glowing Scented Salve, x1 Spring (The Four Seasons), x1 Super Lucky Fancy Asian Cheetos]
[BUFFS: +3 LD, +1 LD (finding familiar only), +1 CD (taming familiar only)]

Waking up in his alchemy tent, Akio stretched and rolled off of his sleeping mat with a grin as he leaped to his feet. "Right, today's the day.." He started putting everything in the tent back into his inventory. The potions, the station, the supplies and materials. And finally he walked outside and took the tent into his inventory too. His face beamed even more. "Today's the day, I get my familiar!" He had messaged Mari a few days back, asking her if she'd be ok with spending their weekend finding a familiar for him. She agreed so long as it wasn't on the ninth or fifth floors. And Akio, who'd traveled up to the eleventh floor by this point, understood why. The fifth floor was a desert, which was stupidly hot and nearly killed him getting to where he needed to go. And then ninth floor was a volcanic wasteland. And it made even more sense seeing as how Mari said she preferred the cold as opposed to the heat. Shaking his head though, he got himself back on track and on the right mindset. He made his way to the fourth floor with relative ease as opposed to the last few times. He wasn't worried about monsters anymore. He found out that he was already a lot stronger than most of the monsters on the lower floors now that he was level ten, especially with a rank three sword skill, so he hummed and walked without much worry or regards to the mobs around him.

Akio eventually made it to Mari's house and ran up to it, his hood and jacket keeping him warm from the cold. Although, he made sure to stretch his shirt and pant sleeves down further so that his legs and arms weren't exposed. It was also a nice feature when he tried to evade guards, tricking them by changing the length of his clothing in an instant, plus changing the jacket and clothes color really helped. He knocked on the front door, and while waiting went ahead and ate the asian cheetos. When he did his eyes widened and scarfed them down. "Wow, these are nothing like the cheetos back in Japan!"

@Mari

[Mari 1]

Mari opened her door, looking down to see Aiko there. "Oh!" She said in surprise. He was ....covered in orange dust, his hands, his face. "You err..." Mari tilted her head offering him a warm smile. Right, he was a kid after all. "I got your message." She said as she stepped to the side to let him in. "What familiar are you wanting?" Mari asked as she turned from him, stepping into her house. "You should warm yourself by the fire before we set off." Mari suggested. She wasn't sure which floor they were going to - or if they were staying on the 4th, regardless - she thought it might be best to have him warm up. 

"Since your last visit I managed to get some treats, just some Jam drops - oh - they're uh...kinda like shortbread with a drop of strawberry jam in the middle of it." Mari gave him a grin. "Although, I'd say you've had your fair share of junk food today, eh Aiko?" 

@Iron_Lion

[Iron_Lion 1]

His face lit up when Mari opened the door, practically oozing energy and excitement. "Hey Mari!" "Oh! You err..." His smile faltered for a moment as he looked for what she was talking about. His hands fidgeting and touching multiple pieces of his clothing as he looked for the cause of concern, accidentally getting the orange dust everywhere now. "Uhhh, what's up? Was there a spider or something?" There was a small incident he had at one point while learning the system. He saw a spider on his arm and freaked out, smacked it but didn't deplete it's health all the way. It looked venomous, bit him, he had a panic attack, then saw that his health was going down by one point per second and stopped freaking out. She then told him she got his message and gestured for him to come inside which he did. When she told him to warm up by the fire he ran over to the plush chairs and threw himself into it, tilting the chair back just a tiny bit before nearly vanishing in the cushions. "Aaaaaaaah, so waaaarm~" He said with a blissful smile as he took off his hood.

"Hmm.. I was thinking something like.. A bald eagle! Or like, a really cool looking hawk! Something like that. I saw this one guy with a velociraptor for a familiar, which was pretty cool but." He hesitated as he thought of how the guy just, disappeared like that. "I don't know, I guess I want something more simple? I played a lot of assassin's creed so maybe that's why I wanna go with a bird." When Mari gave him a sweet, his eyes nearly bulged out of his sockets and didn't hesitate to accept the generous offer. When she commented on his cheetos he stopped his mouth's advance on his treat and instead looked up at her with a slightly pouty face. "Hey, I worked really hard to get enough to buy that. It was a buff to help me find my familiar." 'Well less work and more steal, but semantics' His pout returned to excitement however as he pulled something from his inventory. "Oh, I also got this! It's a song crystal that helps lure them in! And I also made this!:" He said, his excitement reaching it's peak as he pulled out a salve of his own creation. "It's a pheromones salve! I made it using glow shroom powder. Mixed it in with a bone meal paste. Worked reeeeaaaally hard to make it!" After that he took a bite of the sweet and his eyes closed as he sank, almost melting into the chair. "Sooooo yummmyy~"

@Mari

[Mari 1]

 

"A Bald...." Mari sighed. Right. Americans.  But she couldn't fault them, their national animal was a Bald Eagle. Hers? A kangaroo and an emu - and she ate those. So Judgement was not something Mari could pass. She snorted at his suggestion nevertheless.  "I like your ideas. Although a velociraptor may be a little hard to keep track of. If you wanna go with a bird. We can figure that out." 

Assassins Creed...oohh That explained his outfit. Mari had wondered about that - but she couldn't question the fashion choices of a child. An adult who wore a smoke mask on the other hand... "Let's see...so you want something like a hawk, eagle, crow...raven...Osprey?" Mari wasn't too familiar with the game. She listed a bunch of standard birds she'd expect to see in a game that involved parkour. 

"Or..." Mari approached the seat that Aiko was sitting in. "If you wanna kill two birds with one stone I could suggest a Cassowary. It's an Australian flightless bird, has a massive razor like claw. Pretty sure they're descended from velociraptors. Err, not too discreet though." 

Mari sat on the arm of his chair, watching as he pulled out the salve. Eyes lighting up in sheer delight. Mari couldn't help but smile at him. He seemed like a good kid. It really was a shame he had an orange cursor. Maybe some day in the future Mari could convince him to remove it.  "You should be proud." Mari said as she reached out, using her thumb to wipe away a layer of cheeto dust from his cheek. "You created something, AIko. So be very proud of that."

@Iron_Lion

[Iron_Lion 1]

OOC - Sooo sorry for the late reply x-x

Taking another bite of the sweet she gave him he nodded with a bit of excitement growing at the thought of getting his own familiar. "Mhhmm! I u'" He stopped as he swallowed. "Aha, sorry. I'd love to get a hawk or falcon! Aw it would be so cool to have it fly and grab something, bring it back to me! Or maybe deliver messages for me! Yeah that would be so cool!" He kicked his legs with a great wide smile as he continued. "The raptor was cool and all, but I don't think it would be something I'd have. It's just something that would be cool to see every now and then. OH! OH MY GOSH! DRAGONS! THEY'VE GOTTA BE REAL HERE TOO RIGHT? Oh that would be so AWESOME to see!" His eyes were so huge and sparkling as he fantasized what it would be like to see a massive wise dragon soaring through the sky.

Seeing her happiness at his success only made his smile grow. It felt like when his mother beamed with pride when he showed something off to her. That warmth he felt inside... It felt amazing. He missed it. And hearing her tell him to be proud. He was going to make lots more than just this salve. He was going to keep training until he could make the grandest of potions. He was going to make her so proud. Both of them, so proud. Though when she wiped some of the cheeto dust off of his cheek, it clicked what she was reacting to when she opened the door the first time. His cheeks flushed with embarrassment as he started to wipe it off with his sleeve... Then realizing what he just did, tried to rub the cheeto dust off of his sleeve. Eventually though he gave up and just returned his gaze to her, smiling again. "Thanks.. I'm really excited to make new things too. I got to rank two, but I need rank three to make potions. Maybe I can find more materials outside while we search for my familiar. I wonder what I should call him."

@Mari

Edited August 5, 2020 by Iron_Lion

[Mari 1]

"Hmmm..." Mari chewed the inside of her cheek. A Hawk or Falcon... "If you don't mind them being white - I know a place on this floor that has a few Snow Hawks flyin' around. They're nesting right now though so may be a little territorial but hey - means you may be able to get a young one to raise. Right?" Mari offered Aiko a smile. She hadn't played the games he was going on about, so didn't know what colour the birds were in the game, but he was dressed in all white. So...it'd match his outfit. Right?

"You'd both match then." Mari offered as she pointed to his attire. "But if you want something different we can go to another floor."

Aiko jumped up, becoming excited about having a dragon as a familiar. Well. Mari took a deep breath an exhaled on a small chuckle. "Aiko, familiars aren't much bigger than a large dog. You won't be able to ride around on a dragon like that. Mmm...if you had a green crystal you'd probably get away with climbing on the back of the big dragon that guards the 10th floor though." Mari offered, tempting him with a fun activity if he were to ever consider going green. 

Mari reached out and ruffled AIko's hair. "But - if you just wanna see some flying around. I can show you that one day too. So - you ready to get yourself a pet?" Mari asked

@Iron_Lion

[Iron_Lion 1]

"Snow Hawks? That sounds cool~" He wondered if they could change colors in the game or not... Probably not but if that were the case then any colored hawk would do. Then again, at some point he'll change his color to blend in, so he'll need his familiar to stay away from him eventually in order to hide from people chasing him. 'There is never a perfect plan. Always have multiple fallback plans to ensure you're prepared.' He always needed to be prepared... For any situation. When she mentioned how they'd match colors he chuckled at how close their thoughts were... Oh wait a minute. "Oh that's right! I forgot to show you. Watch this!" he said before he opened his menu and moved to his armor. He hit it's special function and grinned when he turned his armor's primary color from white to green. He beamed with pride at Mari. "I asked if they could do this and they totally could! This way I can do my best to blend in with any crowd if I need to! I don't think animals or monsters can chance colors in this game though, so I gotta be careful when sneaking around with one. But that's ok," he said as he changed the color back to white. "I can just come up with something later!"

When she asked if he was ready to get a pet, his eyes gleamed with excitement. "Yeah let's do it! Oh, wait." He looked at the cheeto stain he made on his jacket and gave a sheepish smile. "Uhh.. Is there a way to clean clothes fast? This might ruin my camouflage a little, heh heh..."

@Mari

[Iron_Lion] [Lv. 10]
[DMG:_06//EVA:_03]
HP:  [                    ] (250/250)
EN:  [                    ] (20/20)
XP:  [                    ] (0/3)

[BUFFS: +3 LD, +1 LD (finding familiar only), +1 CD (taming familiar only)]

[Mari 1]

Mari grinned. "Yeh. You think?" Aiko seemed so innocent, Mari really wished he didn't have an orange crystal. Mari couldn't imagine him actually hurting anyone. She knew he had taken a life...and whilst that was wrong it was hypocritical of her to judge. She hated seeing his crystal stained that colour, and wanted nothing more than for him to be rid of it. Perhaps..after the familiar quest she'd bring up the opportunity for him to have it redeemed. She'd fight. She'd ensure she had drawn all the hate - and all the ire of the merciless angel. Just for him to have a semblance of normalcy. 

Mari was headed to her front door when she paused - turning to glance over her shoulder. "Show me what?" Mari turned fully to face the small child as he equipped his armour. A small bemused smile upon her face. "Interesting." It was. Mari wasn't aware that one could have armour that would change colour like that. "So you can change its hue? That's pretty useful to blend into yer surroundings." Mari patted her chest. "I don't think my colours blend in anywhere - even if I were to change my clothing, I think my hair would just stand out too much, huh?" Always with the lame jokes, but that was who Mari was.

Mari nodded. "Mmm yes, You could always have your familiar away in your inventory, that's where mine usually is - I think I'd draw too much attention with a giant floating fish following me around. I've seen lots of interesting familiars. I've seen shadowy creatures - goopy ones that turn into liquid - even ones that look like pumpkins. So I'm sure you'll find what you need at some point."  Hikoru had one that dispensed pumpkin spice latte for crying out loud, but Mari kept that tidbit to herself - it'd be something to bring up later to him.

Mari shook her head as she opened the door, chuckling softly. -letting a blast of cold air into her home before approaching Aiko. She reached out and rubbed the stain off with her thumb, then wiped the dust on her own scarf. "There." Another pat to his head. "C'mon. Let's get you that pet."

 

@Iron_Lion

Edited December 12, 2020 by Mari

[Iron_Lion 1]

Seeing the smile on Mari's face when he showed off his armor made his smile all the more wider. "Yeah! I asked for it for that reason exactly! Now I can use it and my hide skill to camoflauge! Well, I mean. Once I get the hide skill that is. I'm just working on my weapon skill at the moment. But once that's done I can get the hide skill easy!... Unless you think I should stick to getting the hide skill first?" 'Man, I thought I had this whole thing planned out, but I guess if I'm second guessing it in front of Mari, I don't have that much faith in myself do I?' Akio shook those thoughts and feelings away. They weren't going to be helping him in any manner at the very least, so it was best not to ponder on them too much. Especially when there were more important things to do, like search for his familiar. When she told him how even if she had clothing that could change colors like his did, it wouldn't do her any good because of the color of her hair, Akio laughed. "Yeah, I don't think that would blend in anywhere! Did you make it orange by the way? Like, with a dye or something? Or is it a natural color?"

As she described other familiars she'd encountered he could only 'wow', 'woah' and 'ah' at the descriptions. Not verbally but with his expressions. He very much wished to see some familiars that were shadow like for certain. That sounded pretty cool. "There's a pumpkin familiar? Someone wanted a pumpkin as a familiar? That's weird... Though I don't think I could put a familiar in my inventory like that. I'd like it with me for company. Maybe I can make a potion which changes the color of my familiar! I don't know how complicated a potion like that would be, but it could work, right?" He'd already been experimenting with the cosmetic factor. Right now he could only find materials that generated a 'sparkling' or 'glowing' effect, and they weren't really that potent either. They were mild and mainly for fun. One day he wanted to try and see if he could make a potion that, when uncorked, shot a firework into the sky. That would be awesome.

Hearing her state that they should look for his pet now, he nodded with a smile. "Yeah!" He said and took out the song crystal. Activating it played the song 'Spring (The four seasons)', which was a beautiful melody. Akio was almost taken aback by how pretty it sounded. "It's really cool that we get to make all of these... Cool stuff. I wonder if it's possible to make songs that loop on crystals. Or maybe I could make a playlist! Ooh, a trinket that taps song crystals once the other is done! Oh, now THAT'S  a cool idea!" Absolutely giddy with excitement now, he pulled out his inspection lense and put them on. "Alright! Do you have any ideas where we should start looking?"

Song activated: +4 LD, +1 CD when searching for Familiar.

@Mari

[Iron_Lion] [Lv. 10]
[DMG:_06//EVA:_03]
HP:  [                    ] (250/250)
EN:  [                    ] (20/20)
XP:  [                    ] (0/3)

[BUFFS: +4 LD, +1 LD (finding familiar only), +1 CD (taming familiar only)]

[Mari 1]

(oh hey look what I'm finally doing)

"I don't have that skill yet either." Mari admitted. She was told a few times that it'd be a useful thing for her to have - but now that she was a spear user Mari felt it less....useful. "I think they'd work in tandem." Mari offered. The kid was asking for her advice after all. "In the past, I'd say you'd wanna max out your weapon skill - but...hmm..." they were walking in the snow now - heading away from her home. Mari's footsteps looking much more refined compared to the chaos that was a child in the snow. Mari couldn't help but snort and smile seeing their trail. "But - I don't think it'd hurt to grab the hide skill sooner. I guess it depends on how quickly you're able to level up, and exactly what kind of things you're getting up to in the meantime. Do you feel like you'd benefit more from the hide skill?"

Aiko asked if her hair was dyed orange. Mari snorted. "Hah. N-no. It's uhh naturual." She held out her arm to him. "See, naturally ginger- freckles, pale skin, and all. You know though..." She shifted her eyes to the sky. "When I first logged into the game, I had this obtusely coloured cotton candy pink hair. Now that was a dyed colour. I'd walk around wearing all pink because everyone else would wear dark colours - and it was a kinda of a fu-"  Mari coughed, being mindful not to swear too much in front of Aiko. "Screw you to all the people wearing nothing but black." 

Aiko talked about how he wanted a familiar for company, and Mari just...didn't really have the heart to tell him to not get attached to such a thing. What was the point in having a pet you'd grow to love if you had to abandon it here? It felt like it was one step closer to abandoning the real world and just living here forever - not that Mari ever had any intention to actually return.   "Well, they have potions that let you change your hair colour and eye colour - so I don't think that's too far out of the realm of possibilities. I know that there are also special event items to change your familiar. Thats what that pumpkin thing was about, I'll bet you  a whole bag o' chips that it was a special event item." 

Mari fell quiet when the soft melody began to play, his innocent question dredged up unwanted memories. "Yeh." Mari said quietly. "Ya can make them loop on crystals." She had done just that, recorded herself playing the violin, a few times. Those rare times she had given them to people she had cared about...it had always backfired. She shook her head and tightened her scarf around her neck. Placing a smile on her face. Right now, Aiko needed her.

"Let's do a loop around the lake and head into the birch forest. I'll lead us to a small cliffside, between here and there we should find something!"

@Iron_Lion

[Iron_Lion 1]

The cheerful boy stopped skipping through the snow when she started talking to him about how to handle his skills. His mom always told him that he should have fun as a child, but when something serious came up to think seriously about it. "Tandem? Is that like, tantrum? Woah!" He almost tripped in the snow as he tried to hurry and keep up with Mari. He wasn't used to walking through snow all of the time, so not only were his feet being dragged through it, but sometimes the snow was thick enough to threaten tripping him. "Wait, what's wrong with maxing out your weapon skill? I thought that's what everyone suggested?" He watched her intently, listening carefully to every word she said. He looked down when she finished and thought about it carefully. 'I guess she's right. I may have been able to get better at hiding from guards, but there's always that fifty fifty chance they spot me instantly anyway. And players seem to know exactly where I am at all times. What's worse, they're starting to take notice of me. I can't let that happen. Maybe it would be good to get one or two levels in hide first, and then finish training up in dagger...' "Yeah.. That makes sense. Alright. I'll get one or two ranks in hide, and then keep ranking up my dagger skill. There are different quests that provide easy fights, so that shouldn't be too hard right?" He finished with a big smile.

"Wait really? That's cool!" He exclaimed when she told him her hair was naturally orange. When she told him that she'd dyed her hair cotton candy pink once upon a time, he couldn't help but chuckle, though he tried to keep it down. When she cut herself off however, he tilted his head with a confused look. After she 'corrected' herself it clicked. 'Ooooh that's right. Cursing is bad in public.' It wasn't in his mom's creed, so it wasn't something he thought of very much. And it didn't help when he rarely went out in public anyways, and his mom cursing more often than most. In any case, he smiled at her comment. "Yeah! I mean. I've gotta blend in when I can, but it's cool that you can be your own person, be unique and stand out like that!" He pumped his fists into the air. "People who aren't afraid of being different are great!"

Upon hearing about a pumpkin being involved with familiars, Akio's jaw dropped. "You can get a pumpkin as a familiar? Wait how does that work? Is it like a flying jack-o-lantern or something?" Even still, he was glad to know that his familiar could change color schemes to blend in with it's environment. That meant great news for him. His excitement and smile however, died down a little when he saw her reaction to his question. He even recognized the 'fake smile' his mom would wear sometimes. It happened after she'd gotten some counseling and stopped talking about the horrors she'd seen in wartime around him. He opened his mouth to ask what was wrong but held back. 'If someone is hurting, it's probably not the best time to ask them about it. If you want to help them, only talk to them about it when they're ready for it.' He closed his mouth and tried to put on a happy smile again. 'I can't... Not yet. When we're better friends...'  When she suggested a walk around the lake he pumped his fists into the air again. "Yeah lets do i-OOF!" In his excitement, he jumped in the middle of a snow pile and tripped into the snow.

One hour later.

"Awwww, we didn't see anything..." Akio whined as he dragged his feet through the snow. He really hoped this would be a lot faster than it appeared to be. He did however, expect it to be like this. Despite this, he kept searching the entire area, though he wasn't seeing anything.

ID# 184843  LD: 12  -  No Material Found

[Iron_Lion] [Lv. 10]
[DMG:_06//EVA:_03]
HP:  [                    ] (250/250)
EN:  [                    ] (20/20)
XP:  [                    ] (0/3)

[BUFFS: +4 LD, +1 LD (finding familiar only), +1 CD (taming familiar only)]

[Familiar Found: 0/1]

[Post Count: 11]

@Mari

Edited March 5, 2021 by Iron_Lion

[Mari 1]

"Tandem its like..."

Times like these, Mari was glad she was a teacher. She found moments like these easier to navigate. "It's like working alongside each other- in conjunction or together like..." She paused as she reached out to clasp his tiny hands between her own. She rolled them one over the other. "See, like this - your hands move and work together. They're separate- but still work together. Think about cogs in a machine or a clock." Mari offered Aiko a smile before letting go of his hands.  "There's nothing wrong with maxing out your weapon skill." Mari reaffirmed as she brushed some snow from his hair. "Some people become focused on it though. So their builds center around that - when there are so many other options. Heck, I had that same issue." Mari batted her chest. "So I speak from my own mistakes!"

"-There are different quests that provide easy fights, so that shouldn't be too hard right?"

"Right, and I am always just a message away."

She covered her mouth, smiling at his small exuberant outburst, claiming that unique people were great. It was...so innocent, he seemed so innocent. It was like a breath of fresh air to see a child here who was still so carefree. Even....if he did have that cursor over his head. Mari glanced back up at it, her smile fading. She wanted to get rid of it, but she couldn't do it alone. Macradon would help, so would Baldur if she asked. The issue wasn't finding people to help, it was getting Aiko to agree to it. with a party of 4 - Mari knew that the three of them could draw all the hate away from him, right? Mari made a mental note to look into how the Redemption quest worked.

"You know what else? That pumpkin dispensed pumpkin spice coffee. How strange is that! Geez, and people think I'm weird for a floatin' fish." She shook her head. it had been some time since she had heard of or seen Hikoru, it felt like he disappeared completely after their encounter. She heard rumors of him, seems he was a big shot when it came to information trading. Who'd have thunk?"
 

After an hour they had yet to find anything - and were beginning to head into the forest. Aiko was acting just as Mari suspected. Dragging his feet with a whine. "Tired already?" She quipped. Mari was used to walking up and down several floors to get places, so despite her always feeling fatigued at times, she felt like her stamina was better than others.  "We're coming into the forest now, why not secure a small place for hmm..." She tapped her lip in thought. What word should she use here to make it not sound like they were just taking a break?

"Reconnaissance, that's what all good assassins do, right? Survey their surroundings?"

@Iron_Lion

[Iron_Lion 1]

"Ooooh, so kind of like partners then. Like peanut butter and jelly!" He loved the way his mother made pb and j. She used a tool that cut the crust off and compressed it into a curved circle sandwich. As she continued and explained how some people put too much focus on their weapon skill, blushing a bit when she wiped some of the snow off of his head, he recognized the wisdom in it. While he definitely needed to max it out, he also needed to practice survival skills like hide. If he recalled there was also a mod that hid your username from others when in a party, while also preventing players from tracking you down. If he could get that mod, then he could be safe for a while. On the flip side, he needed more damage to survive longer against stronger mobs. He'd need to strike a balance between the two skills if he wanted to survive properly. Nodding he said: "I'll take you're advice to heart Mari. Thanks for the help~"

Upon hearing that the strange pumpkin someone got as a familiar could release pumpkin spice coffee his face crinkled up. He didn't like coffee to start with, but.. "Eeewww, someone actually drank a pumkin's vomit? That's disgusting."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Akio fell forward onto the snow. "...eeephhh." He said through the snow in answer to her question. 'Well, more accurately I'm bored.. But..' He rolled onto his back and wiped the snow off of his face and looked up... Or, forward? What would you call that direction if he was lying on his back? "Huh? Oh. Well... That's good right? I mean... Birds like forests... Right?" What she said next though made his eyes widen. "Reconnaissance, that's what all good assassins do, right? Survey their surroundings?" 'What a good assassin would do?' Akio curled up and kicked himself to his feet, almost losing his balance in the process. "R-right! I can do that! Just watch, I got this!" Akio ran up over to one of the more taller trees. 'Ok ok. I don't have climbing gear... But, it's a tree. I can use my dagger where there isn't a branch close enough. Wait, somewhere to jump down safely.... Oh there's a big pile of snow there! Perfect!' Akio drew his hidden blade and unhooked the dagger, before he began to climb.

The climb took a bit longer than he expected. He would have fallen if he hadn't thrust his dagger in between each branch he climbed to, just as a safety function. "I-I'm ok! I got this!" Eventually he'd reach the top and pant a bit as he scanned the area. Despite being tired, he was really excited. He felt like he was in assassins creed. Although this wasn't as tall as they'd normally be when synchronizing in the game, it was way, way tall enough for him. "...I don't see anything... Wait, WAIT! I think I might see something over there! I can't tell if it's a hawk or not, but I-aaaaAAAAAAAH!!" He leaned too far forward and fell towards the snow pile, arms flailing.... It didn't last as long as he'd thought and he fell into it with an 'oof' Akio crawled out of the snow bank and flopped on his back again. "That looks SO much easier in the game. How do they do it?"

ID# 185030  LD: 4  No MAT found

[Post Count: 13]

[Iron_Lion] [Lv. 10]
[DMG:_06//EVA:_03]
HP:  [                    ] (250/250)
EN:  [                    ] (20/20)
XP:  [                    ] (0/3)

[BUFFS: +4 LD, +1 LD (finding familiar only), +1 CD (taming familiar only)]

[Familiar Found: 0/1]

@Mari

Edited March 7, 2021 by Iron_Lion

[Mari 1]

Peanut butter and jelly

An odd concoction Mari never truly understood. It was never really a thing in Australia, and she had tried it once - and it tasted bloody awful. A gross, sloppy mess. And jelly? Wasn't it just jam. Another thing she didn't understand, but she wasn't going to berate a child for liking such things. She wasn't that much of a bitch.

"Yeh, somethin' like that." Mari commented absently.  She gave Aiko a smile and a nod when he said he'd tale his advice to heart. "You say that about the pumpkin..." Mari started, then snorted. "But honey is just bee vomit. Eggs come out a chickens butt - milk out a cows teat, is it really all that far to drink coffee from some strange creature in a virtual world?' 

After falling in the snow he leapt forward with newfound vigor.  As he ran toward a nearby tree Mari sat herself down on a flat rock, crossing her legs and leaning against the tree in which the rock sat against. She watched him as he exerted himself, climbed up higher - giving his own reaffirmations. Again, Mari had to wonder if he really was as young as he said he was. There were times where he seemed older, but most of the time he did just act like a hyperactive child. 

He had thought he seen something, but promptly fell - Mari pushed herself up off the rock and approached him, helping him out the snow. "Well, I haven't really played those games but I've seen clips and videos of them - they dont really do it in the game. They're not people like us." Mari gave Aiko a small pat on his head. 

"Shall we go in the direction you saw something?"

 

@Iron_Lion

[Iron_Lion 1]

Ignorant of her thoughts on peanut butter and jelly, Akio continued walking happily by her side as they continued to look for his familiar. As she described the different foods which each came from the insides of some form of animal, his face became more wrinkled with each example, until his face was all scrunched up. "...Nature is gross." He said at last. "I'm never eating honey or eggs again." This wasn't the truth obviously, he loved eggs and loved sweets. It was just his way of expressing how disgusting that sounded when the truth was brought forward like that. "But... Yeah, I guess it isn't real is it? I guess that makes it, better."

While Mari was accurate in that there were moments where he seemed more mature, this was not actually the case. He did everything he could to focus and follow his mother's creed with all of his strength, but even in those moments he was easily distracted. At best he put on a brave face and claimed he was a man. He was really more scared than usual in those moments. There was nothing mature about him. He simply taught himself to shove all his emotions down when he was in danger and follow every lesson his combat tutors and his mother had taught him to follow.

Not that he'd ever admit to this of course.

Akio grunted as Mari pulled him out of the snow. "...I mean I guess... But, we're in a video game now too right? Where physics and stuff are different? Wouldn't that mean that we could do stuff like that too? Things we can't do in the real world?" He fell silent as he thought about this, hoping that it was true. Though those thoughts were interrupted when Mari suggested they go check out the place he spotted something. His bright smile coming back he nodded. "Yeah! Le-oof!" In his excitement he tripped over a root buried in the snow.

When they reached the area he thought he saw it, no matter how much they looked around, not a single hawk was to be seen. "Awww... I thought I saw one..."

ID# 188259  LD: 4+5=9  No familiar found... Gotta wait another 15 posts to try again.

@Mari

[Iron_Lion] [Lv. 10]
[DMG:_06//EVA:_03]
HP:  [                    ] (250/250)
EN:  [                    ] (20/20)
XP:  [                    ] (0/3)

[BUFFS: +4 LD, +1 LD (finding familiar only), +1 CD (taming familiar only)]
[Objective: Locate Familiar 0/1]

Edited April 13, 2021 by Iron_Lion