[PP | F1] Trepidation of Transition

[Katoka 0]

Raw, bone chilling cold was the last thing Katoka remembered before she let herself succumb to her vantablack prison.

With a gasp of breath the samurai bolted upward from her bed in her home. She was coated in a cold sweat and sucking in rapid lungfuls of air as her eyes darted around rapidly. Had it all be a horrible dream? For her to be in bed now it must have been. An alert sounded from her hud and a window popped up in front of her. As she read the word on the window she felt her blood run cold.

System Update Complete. Welcome to 3.0. Please take the time to consult the update notes before allocating your refunded skill points.

Tapping the ok button she quickly swiped her menu open and checked her level and gear. She then tabbed over to her friends list and checked to see who was 'online', this was a handy way to check and see if anyone she knew had died or not. Scrolling down she saw Sam, Elora, and Freyd were still online. Leaping out of bed she quickly typed a message to Sam telling her she would be by as soon as possible, she had to check on Elora first.

As the blonde sprinted from her homestead she made haste to the teleport, the thought of seeing her friend being consumed by the black mud still fresh in her mind.

Moving to Floor 1

Upon arriving in the Town of Beginnings Katoka didn't hesitate to take in the changes in the square, instead she sprinted down the crowded streets as she weaved and dodged her way to the familiar domicile of the Hummingbird Inn. Busting through the front door she didn't stop to listen or respond to he greetings of the Innkeeper, she frantically moved around the bodies of NPC's and other confused players before she stopped at the door to Elora's room. Panting heavily she raised her hand to knock and hesitated. What if her friend list lied? What if the room was empty and her elven friend was actually--

She shook her head, now was not the time for what ifs. Katoka rapped her knuckles on the door before her three times before calling out to whoever may reside inside.

"E-Elora? It's Kat. Are you there?"

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

Katoka | HP: 680/680 | EN: 102/102 | DMG: 23 | MIT: 78 | EVA: 1 | ACC: 1 | BLD: 48

Spoiler

Katoka, The Cerulean Storm
Level: 31
Paragon Level: 6
HP: 680/680
EN: 102/102

Stats:
Damage: 23
Mitigation: 78
Evasion: 1
Accuracy: 1
BLD: 48

Equipped Gear:
Weapon: Iridescent Edge (T4/Perfect/Katana) | BLD 1, DMG 2
Armor: Bushido Haori (T4/Perfect/Light Armor) | MIT 2, EVA 1
Misc:

Skills:
1HCS R1
Katana R5
Light Armor R5
Energist
Extended Mod Limit

Active Mods:
Ferocity
Stamina
Meticulous
Resolve
Vengeful Riposte

Inactive Mods:

Active Extra Skills:
Concentration
Parry

Inactive Extra Skills:
Survival

Battle Ready Inventory:
Teleportation Crystal: 5
Starter Healing Potion: 3

 

Edited February 12, 2022 by Katoka

[Elora 0]

 

Light...warmth...stinging...pain....

Elora's senses slowly began to reawaken as a patch of sunlight drifted to rest between her eyelids. 

The...other side...

Then, an obnoxious high-pitched chiming. Her alarm clock? No...It was...a sign -- a menu? The blurs between lapsing blinks gradually sharpened to reveal more information:

System Update Complete. Welcome to 3.0. Please take the time to consult the update notes before allocating your refunded skill points.

I don't... 

thud. thud. thud. Thud. Thud. THUD, drummed the anthem of worried footsteps as someone sprinted through the halls.

BANG!

Thunder -- Rain -- 

Elora jumped, tearing herself free from the paralysis.

BANG!

A landslide -- Screaming --

She reached to her side, hoping to find her spear.

BANG!

Neighing -- Darkness --

Her hand met the cold stem of a rose cast from copper.

Freezing -- Drowning -- The End. All of the memories roared through her mind like an unstoppable flood, her eyes spilling over with tears as her body began to brake under the pressure of --

The door to her bedroom skidded and scraped across warped walls as it fell clean from the hinges and crashed onto the floor. Elora swore she could hear a distant yell from below as an alarmed innkeeper protested to the perceived destruction of his property. Fist clenched around the metallic flower, Elora brandished its bud like a weapon to threaten whatever --

" --- !", her throat choked, failing to produce the name of a familiar face as it formed from the corners of her vision. She swallowed dryly and tried again.

"kat..."

 

Spoiler

Elora
Level: 31
Paragon Level: 3
HP: 660/660
EN: 100/100

Stats:
Damage: 23
Mitigation: 30
Accuracy: 2
Battle Healing: 33
Loot Dice: 1

Equipped Gear:

Skills:
2HAS R5
Light Armor R5
Battle Healing R5
Charge
Energist
Searching R1

Active Mods:
Stamina
Ferocity
Resolve
Meticulous

Inactive Mods:

Active Extra Skills:

Inactive Extra Skills:
Concentration

Battle Ready Inventory:

Housing Buffs:

Guild Hall Buffs:

Scents of the Wild:

Wedding Ring:

 

Edited May 20, 2021 by Elora

[Katoka 0]

Katoka watched as the door to Elora's room fell inwards and crumpled to the floor. She blinked a few times, very confused at how weak the hinges must have been to come loose from her light knocking. Her gaze drifted to the form of her green haired friend, holding out what seemed to be a metal flower in front of her.

"kat..." She managed to croak.

Katoka stepped slowly into the room, after crossing the threshold she covered the remaining to distance to Elora in two bounding steps. The samurai wrapped her arms around her, pulling her close into a tight embrace that would probably have crushed a normal person's ribs. Burying her face into the elven woman's hair she let out a choking sob, "E-Elora..." she managed to get out between wails. Kat felt her knees give and she pulled Elora to the ground as they embraced one another.

"I-I tried to g-get you out." she said as she grabbed handfuls of her tunic, "I'm sorry, I-I'm so sorry." She cried into Elora, hoping she could forgive her for not being strong enough. "I-I tried and I t-tried. But you w-were so deep."

All of the anger and pain that she had felt previously washed back over her. She cried hard. Harder than she ever had before. She had let her friend down, she watched her practically die slowly in front of her and there was nothing she could have done.

And it hurt.

[Elora 0]

Elora fumbled in Katoka's embrace, releasing the thorny trinket as the two of them fell to the floorboards. The marigold menu that had shielded Elora from the new world swiftly shattered into diamonds that danced around them in the daybreak.

"I-I tried to g-get you out", began Kat as she desperately clung to her friend for comfort,  "I-I'm so sorry."

I called for you, I hoped that you would save me, she wanted to admit. Instead, she found herself raising her arms and slinging them around Katoka's neck, trying desperately to draw her closer, suspend them both in this fleeting moment. If this is what security is supposed to feel like, then why do I still feel so afraid?  It all seemed so fragile now. Anything and everything could be taken away from her - from all of them - in only an instant. It was supposed to be easier than this, she thought as her mind recounted its previous decision to answer the call of the void. Death could have been the antidote and the sweet release that she wanted, But now....

"I don't even know what I want anymore", whispered Elora as her voice began to crack, "I want all of it, all of THIS to end, but I'm also... I'm so terrified of even --" She held onto Katoka, continuing to speak through stifled sobs, "Of even accepting that this is all just some BIG, STUPID FACCADE! I came to this world to escape death, not embrace it--!"

[Katoka 0]

"I fought," she managed to choke out through the sobs, "I got so angry. I fought and I killed and the rage that filled me was terrifying. But when I lost you I couldn't stop." She pulled back so that she could get a better look at Elora. There wasn't a mark on her. No scratches, no dirt, she wasn't wet from the rain like she had last seen her. "In the end I was fighting back to back with Setsuna from the guild, we... We went down together." Kat felt a shiver run up her spine.

Taking Elora's face in both of her hands and gave her a tear filled smile, "We don't have to figure out what we want right now. Let's just, take things one step at a time ok?" Katoka placed her forehead against Elora's and let out a laugh that sounded more like a sob, "I'm so happy you're ok. I'm sorry I wasn't strong enough." She felt the rage that she used that night bubble briefly inside her before she let out a deep sigh to calm herself. "I'll never let it happen again..."

[Elora 0]

"In the end I was fighting back to back with Setsuna from the guild, we... We went down together."

"Did you see it too --?" , asked Elora as Katoka uttered another apology. She paused and shook her head, regretting the interjection. "I'm sorry", she started again, "I'm -- well -- it was almost more of, a lot of feelings, than a sight. There was a moment where I thought that I could still feel you, then I just -- everything started playing out so quickly. I felt so heavy, like all of my regrets and all of the things that I regretted never doing, were dragging me down" Elora took a moment to steady her breathing as she noticed her friend's eyes grow wide with concern. She didn't want to overwhelm her with all of this, but at the same time, she felt it was impossible to stifle the emotions, which had begun to surface all at once. "It just seemed like, nothing that I had done up until that point had been enough, or at least, it didn't mean anything. I couldn't feel happy about the life that I had lived, and I especially wasn't ready for it to be over..." She sighed, "At least when you went out, you fought until it took you both. That's something to be proud of..."

Edited July 3, 2021 by Elora

[Katoka 0]

"I fought because I was furious. I was angry at myself for not being strong enough to help you and for this damn game for doing that to us." Katoka released Elora and placed her hands on her cheeks, smooshing them together to make her lips stick out in a funny way. "We're fine now. We survived whatever this was. Reset, or purge, or whatever it was the system did. Now let's just. Be happy for a bit ok?" She let her face go and scooted next to the elven woman, placing her back against the bed. There arms were lightly touching, just enough for the other to know they were both there without having to look. Katoka closed her eyes and let out a sigh, "I'm sorry you had to go though that alone. Let alone at all. We all came here to escape from the real world and ended up getting trapped in this hell."

She looked over to her and swiped open her game menu, "But do you feel it? Like we're a bit stronger?" Looking back to her menu she navigated to her stats, the numbers were different before. Her overall level was lower but she definitely felt a difference. "I checked my friends list, everyone seems to still be alive. Have you gotten anything from Freyd yet?"

[Elora 0]

"Now let's just. Be happy for a bit ok?"

"How do you figure we'll do that? We can't even get drunk here", chuckled Elora with great effort. She still felt so exhausted, so melancholic. "How are we supposed to return to normal when we don't even know what normal is anymore?", she found herself proposing against her better judgement. It was probably best not to think about. "Eh, whatever. Honestly, any reason to distract ourselves from what just happened is good enough for me. Let's go." 

Slowly extending her limbs, she uneasily forced herself to depart from the ground. "I don't know that I'd say I feel any stronger...but there is...something definitely feels different", agreed Elora as she motioned to open her menu. With widening eyes, she regarded the numbers. "This isn't right. These -- they didn't look like this before. I think...there must have been a glitch or something. This is so much higher than befo--"

Freyd...

Elora hesitated as the familiar name resonated with her. Her eyes darted to a corner of the screen, where she scanned the list of users she'd encountered, and the alerts that would indicate if any of them had contacted her. He was online, but --

"No messages", she stated bluntly before making her way toward the entrance of the room. Don't think about it. Find a distraction, just like you always have. "What are we doing today?"

[Katoka 0]

Standing up Katoka brushed herself off despite not really being dirty, "Freyd hasn't messaged you yet?" she asked, though now that she saw the look on Elora's face after say that she regretted it. "I'm sure he has his reasons, you know how he is." she shrugged a bit in an attempt to lighten the mood, "The fact that he's showing up online means he's at least ok. Unless we need to go beat him up." she pressed her fist against Elora's arm playfully.

"For now let's just... Walk. Maybe find something to eat along the way? I'm stating to get a small bit of my appetite back." she held out her hand, "We don't have to do much if you don't want, even just enjoying each other's company is nice."

Katoka walked with her elven friend as they left the Hummingbird Inn together. Other players seemed to be walking about, confused and dazed. Some running to get to the teleport gate at the center of town, others wandering about attempting to find something or someone. It was reassuring that they weren't the only ones taking things similarly.

[Elora 0]

Elora gulped dryly, the lines of her lips flattening as she set her jaw into place. "Yeah", she vaguely agreed in response to all of her friend's observations. "Food sounds nice", she added after a prolonged stretch of silence, "And...actually...wasn't there a place that we were gonna go together? To see at some point?" The heels of her boots scrapped across the splintered floorboards of the inn as she shuffled and searched for the answer. Finally, she snapped -- or at least, she tried to through the thick fabric of her gloved hand. "Cherry blossoms! Didn't you mention that you got Hanami somewhere where there were lots of cherry blossoms?" Wait -- Borris!, panicked Elora as her mind suddenly remembered her own tiny, rocky familiar. Flashing her wrists, she was quickly comforted to find that he was still wrapped around it like a stony bracelet. "Oh, thank god -- for a second I was worried that I lost Borris. He's still here though, stoic as ever", she showed Katoka with a relived chuckle.

[Katoka 0]

Katoka chuckled and patted the little rock golem, "I'm glad he's alright. Hanami is back home, I passed her on the way out." She walked alongside Elora and just walked aimlessly through the city. "I don't know if going over to that spot right now would be the best idea, especially since we don't know what else is different. I do know of a good restaurant around here that has a decent variety on their menu." With a swipe of her hand, the samurai opened her game menu and located the map. She scrolled around until she found the spot and marked it with a pin.

"Well it's good to know that at least hasn't changed. Now, onward to the Frantic Ferret!" she motioned for the elven woman to follow as she turned on a side street towards a new location. "This place has really good food, and despite the lack of effects, good alcohol as well."

[Elora 0]

"This place has really good food, and despite the lack of effects, good alcohol as well."

Elora laughed half-heartedly before muttering beneath her breath, "If only it were like the real world..." Shoving both hands into the pockets of her worn shorts, she began to speculate aloud, "What were things like for you, Kat? Before all of this happened? Did you finish high school or go to university?" An inexplicable sensation of of rising tension made her regret asking the question. "I'm sorry -- I didn't mean to just bring it up like that -- our lives on the outside, I mean...", Elora sighed, "I just feel so spacy right now, like I'm still recovering from some sort of shock." Her eyes continued to drift over the cityscape around them, spotting several faces with expressions she could not decipher. "I feel like right now, nothing matters, but also like, everything matters. There's just too much to take in, and I can't get a grasp on any of it..." A wandering gaze gradually rolled forward to rest on the back of her friend's head as the blonde lead them to their destination. She was worried about Katoka, about her, about Freyd, about everyone. Booze made it easier to forget.

[Katoka 0]

Katoka smiled sadly, thinking about home. Elora bringing up the outside was not something everyone trapped inside the game did often. "It's fine, sometimes it's good to think about what you've left behind. I was in my final year of high school, I guess now I'm way past that point." She laughed and bumped her shoulder against Elora's. "I miss my family. My mom, my dad, my little sister. You remind me a lot of her actually." She felt a surge of emotion that she hadn't thought about in a long time. Katoka wrapped her arm around Elora's and rested her head on her shoulder; the comfort of her warmth, despite being digital, was what Katoka needed right now. Her voice was strained, but there was a tinge of happiness in it as she spoke, "My sister and I would help my mom in the garden out back. Picking weeds and watering the plants. She was the reason I got any sunlight at home. Otherwise I'd be holed up in my room playing games all night."

"A lot happened. It's ok to feel things. Hell, why do you thing I rushed over to check on you as soon as... As soon as I woke up? Respawned? Whatever this was. Regardless, shit matters. You matter, I matter. We all do." The small blonde squeezed the elven woman's arm on final time before she let go. "You don't have to feel ashamed for living in this place while our dumb bodies do whatever on the outside. Hell, it's ok to live a better life in here!" Kat gestured to the town they walked through. "Everyone here is alive. Everyone here is doing something. Working, eating, sleeping, finding love," she waggled her eyebrows, "and most of all. Living."

"I don't know much about your outside life, and you you don't have to tell me if you don't want to. But remember that it's ok to have a life in here as well El." this was the first time she thought to call Elora by a nickname, but at this point she felt that they were close enough that she could.

[Elora 0]

"It's fine, sometimes it's good to think about what you've left behind. I was in my final year of high school, I guess now I'm way past that point."

She's younger than I thought, Elora considered, but not much younger than me.

"I miss my family. My mom, my dad, my little sister. You remind me a lot of her actually."

For a moment, Elora could feel her muscles tensing as her mind became defensive, LITTLE sister? Does she think I'm immature or something? Elora paused for a moment, reflecting on how her own reaction could only suggest that she was just that. An intentional sigh indicated that she had acknowledged the behavior, and that she was doing her best to stifle whatever petty quip she had intended to make in defense of it. Bumping into Elora, the blonde affectionately interlocked an arm with her own. She recoiled from the touch at first, then slowly relaxed and welcomed its comfort. It felt like...that it had been so long since she had been held by someone else. Not since that night. It was just like this with her and I, before everything turned to shit...We held onto each other until -

"My sister and I would help my mom in the garden out back. Picking weeds and watering the plants."

"Wait, is that why you learned Alchemy?", interjected Elora. She had neglected to wait for her friend to finish speaking.

"She was the reason I got any sunlight at home. Otherwise I'd be holed up in my room playing games all night."

"Oh...", Elora added softly. She understood exactly what Katoka meant.

"Regardless, shit matters. You matter, I matter. We all do...Everyone here is alive. Everyone here is doing something. Working, eating, sleeping, finding love...and most of all. Living."

"Damn, Kat", marveled Elora through a series of groggy blinks, "It's like, not even 9am and you're already going completely philosophical" She cracked a sideways smirk in a telltale sign that she appreciated the sentiment of what she was saying, even if it was profound, nebulous, and difficult to follow. 

"I don't know much about your outside life, and you don't have to tell me if you don't want to. But remember that it's ok to have a life in here as well El."

El? Was that...a nickname for her? Elora's chest began to tickle and feel like static. She had never been nicknamed before -- at least -- not in any kind of endearing way! I like that!, she decided with a growing grin. "Well", she started slyly, "I managed to finish high school somehow, but never ended up getting into any colleges. I was a bit of a troublemaker, so I don't know how much we would have gotten along if you were a try-hard. I snuck out whenever I could and did my best to socialize with different groups in school. I floated around between a few for awhile, but never managed to find one that would take me for very long." Just like Firm Anima, A nagging doubt tried to suggest. She dismissed it before she'd have the chance to consider it further. "I think it made people uncomfortable that I had bad grades and got grounded so often"

Edited November 25, 2021 by Elora

[Katoka 0]

"Oh? Older than me huh?" she grinned, "Guess I should call you older sister eh?"

Katoka listened as Elora told her about her family and past. She wasn't that different from herself in a way. "Don't worry, I wasn't a try-hard at all. After getting bullied in middle school I just kind of, stopped interacting with people at school. I wanted to stay at home all the time but my mom made go. She said it was 'good for socializing' even though I didn't. I had friends online that I played games with. That was my socializing." she shrugged nonchalantly, "But she didn't see it that way."

When they reached the restaurant that were searching for, Kat lead Elora in and found a table. They sat down and as they looked over the menu she continued, "Good one on picking up the alchemy bit by the way. It reminds me of spending that unwanted time with my family, but I miss it a lot so it's an odd comfort." She laughed as she attempted to read the menu in front of her.

[Elora 0]

"Guess I should call you older sister eh?"

"Please don't --", asserted Elora, "Anime has already ruined that trope --" Her resolve was quickly shattered by an unsuccessfully-suppressed laugh.

"After getting bullied in middle school I just kind of, stopped interacting with people at school.", Kat continued the conversation of her aforementioned adolescence, "I had friends online that I played games with. That was my socializing, but she didn't see it that way."

"Mm, yeah", acknowledged Elora, "My parents had a difficult time with understanding that about me as well, though they definitely didn't think that I was suffering from a lack of socialization. They really just cared about my grades and whether or not I was passing my classes--" Elora bit her lip as she hesitated with sharing another aspect to the situation. Thankfully, their arrival to the restaurant presented a natural transition to another topic of discussion. She cracked a half-hearted smile at Katoka's feelings toward her family. In a way, she felt the same. There was a strange sense of nostalgia that washed over her whenever she would spend too much time in her room, reminiscing about the life that she had lived outside of this game. Out there, everything that she sensed and experienced was real, even though it usually sucked. "Well, you've definitely got a more endearing reason for wanting to study Alchemy", she chuckled dryly, "I just really liked learning about Biology in high school, despite forgetting all of systems and terms the second that I was tested on them" Her grin widened after that admission. With an eager hand, she shadowed her friend, scooping a menu from the top of the table to scour for something delicious to devour. "I don't know about you -- but I feel like I could eat a feast after that long of a sleep!, she exclaimed, "So what's good around here anyway? I'll eat anything that isn't boiled meat and potatoes"

 

[Katoka 0]

Katoka laughed, she was enjoying their time together. After what had happened, it was nice to even pretend to get back to normal in some fashion. "Hmmm, they have pretty much everything here. It's what makes it such a popular spot during the dinner rush." taking a look at the menu the samurai grinned, "I know what I'm getting, the buffalo chicken sandwich." Continuing to look over her menu despite being done she read a few other items.

"Honestly I love their sandwiches here, I'd recommend almost any of them." tipping her menu down Kat looked out of the window to watch the NPCs and players as they moved through the city. "Do you think anything else has changed? Like quests or whole floors? Maybe the NPCs as well. I wonder if they notice any differences as well."

She trailed off as she began to wonder. The NPCs in SAO always seemed so much more lifelike than any game she had ever played. You could sometimes trip them up with dialogue that confused them and caused them to repeat somethings, but for the most part their AI was intensely complex. 

[Elora 0]

"I know what I'm getting, the buffalo chicken sandwich."

"A buffalo -- what...?", stammered Elora as she tried to search the menu for the dish, "So it's got like, buffalo AND chicken in it? What does buffalo even taste like? -- And you'd better not say "chicken"!", she added with a narrowed stare before lowering her gaze to peruse the menu. "Let's see if they've got anything that isn't just a meat sandwich -- Oooh!", she let out a suppressed gasp, "How about boxty? That's not just meat or just boiled potatoes!" Elora eagerly scanned the sheets of pixels for her favorite Irish dish. To her disappointment, it didn't seem to be something that the game could conjure for her. "Ehh -- guess I shouldn't be surprised. Guess I'll just go with pancakes and hashbrowns, then throw some sausages on the side.", she decided with less enthusiasm.

"Do you think anything else has changed? Like quests or whole floors?"

Elora paused momentarily to consider Kat's questions. "Huh. Now that you mentioned it...", she began to speculate, "Probably. All of this seems like some sort of grandiose system update -- maybe a way to shut us all down for a second so Kayaba could add an expansion to Aincrad? Besides, our stats have already been changed, and I doubt that's the only thing. I guess we'll just have to hope it's nothing too drastic, and especially not anything that we can't handle. The last thing any of us need is for this game to get more difficult..."

[Katoka 0]

Katoka giggled, "No, it has buffalo sauce, it's an American thing. It's like a spicy chicken sandwich." she smiled and tried not to laugh again as to not upset Elora. It was cute watching her pick through the menu while talking out loud. After her decision was made Kat waved down the waiter NPC and the two placed their orders. "They don't actually have to cook the food since, you know, game. It just kind of spawns in after a time. They still make you wait though."

"I think that regardless of updates things will get harder, especially the higher we advance through the floors. It seems like this may have been more of a level equalizing thing, at least from what little I've gathered in the past hour or so. It's going to take a lot of careful testing to see what all has changed." The samurai took a sip of the glass of water in front of her as she gathered her thoughts, "I think as long as we stick together like we have in the past we should be alright. Caution and planning will see us through." Katoka froze and opened her eyes shocked at what she said. She smiled and laughed a bit, "I sound like my father."

[Elora 0]

"They don't actually have to cook the food since, you know, game. It just kind of spawns in after a time. They still make you wait though."

Elora always found this and similarly superficial spectacles to be strange. It's like Kayaba wanted us to have some sense of normalcy during all of this, she mused, How kind of him to consider how comfortable we should be while we're trapped here...

"I think that regardless of updates things will get harder, especially the higher we advance through the floors. It seems like this may have been more of a level equalizing thing, at least from what little I've gathered in the past hour or so."

Absently, Elora raised her cup of water to her own lips. She silently contemplated Katoka's words before carefully guiding the glass back down to the table. "Do you feel like...", Elora started slowly as she struggled to express the weight of what she'd begun to feel. "Like you're not ready to handle this sort of responsibility?", she should have shared. Instead, Elora did her best to punch down the bubbling doubts. "-- Like our food should be finished by now?", she curtailed her conscience a bit too readily, "It's been like a whole two minutes -- I'm sure virtual food doesn't take that long to not cook." As if on cue, the restaurant's stewardess completed her walk sequence and began to loop back to their table. "Aha! I knew it!", she proclaimed before taking another hasty sip of water.

"I think as long as we stick together like we have in the past we should be alright. Caution and planning will see us through."

"Yep! That's the hope!", agreed Elora as she gestured wildly with her fork.

"I sound like my father."

"IIII'm sure there's a lot to unpack there", she observed with a nervous chuckle. "But we can go on and on about our troubled home-lives later. For now, let's eat!"

 

Thread Summary:

4,556 / 30 = 151*5 = 755*Tier

Kat Receives:

Spoiler

3020 EXP (Word Count [755*4])
653 col (200 [1 page/2] + 468 [Laurel, +15% of EXP as col])

Elora Receives:

Spoiler

3020 EXP (Word Count [755*4])
653 col (200 [1 page/2] + 468 [Laurel, +15% of EXP as col])

 

Edited February 14, 2022 by Elora