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[royal-despair-threads]

Chiyo & Seojun [Prologue]

Not knowing what else to do, Chiyo decides to get up from her chair and make her way across the room. She stops before a fish tank, and leans forward to watch the fishies. The bluish glow slightly reflects off of her pale complexion.

She raises her finger, lightly hovering it over the glass and watching the fish gather around it in curiosity. She drags her finger around the surface and watches the fish follow.

As Seojun was wandering around the anteroom with a newfound curiosity, he happened to notice the short girl with the braids looking over at one of the fish tanks.  The many fish were gathering towards her, and he happened to notice her eyes also following the fish, which he found to be quite intriguing.  She seemed to be meek, but kind and rather intelligent.  After all, wasn't  a chess player supposed to be intelligent?

He decided to take the initiative to go up to her, and stand next to her.  As the Internet Troll watches the fish swim around, he couldn't help but speak up at that moment.  "They like you, huh?"  A small smile dawned across his lips.

Chiyo jumps, startled at the sudden interaction. She immediately retracts her finger, hiding it behind her back as if she were doing something bad.

“Oh! Oh, uh..” her voice cracked for a second there. “I, I suppose so..” For some reason she feels uneasy.

Why did she hide her finger?  That was a bit odd; she had no reason to hide what she was doing just now.  Seojun's smile became a bit more gentle, as he tilted his head slightly.  He felt that turning towards her would be more respectful, so he does so.

"What's the matter?  It's not a bad thing the fish like you, haha."  His eyes shut for a second, as he gives a quiet laugh.  "It's kinda cute, y'know?"

Damn it Seojun this isn't the time to be subconsciously flirty-

“H, hhuh?? Cute???” Chiyo’s face flushes with red at the blond boy’s comment. “H, um, uh..” her eyes dart around for a second, as if trying to find something to change the subject. Finally they find a space on the ground, as her hands goes to fiddle with her hair. “Thank you, um, for thinking so.. I’m glad..” She can kinda feel her heart pounding like crazy.

She’s embarrassed to have been caught by such an attractive boy, doing something as childish as playing with the fish. Chiyo then realizes that she doesn’t quite remember a name to go along with his pretty face.

“Um, I’m sorry if I... just don’t remember, but c, could I get your name?”

The Internet Troll's eyes opened once more to meet with Chiyo's pink, another smile dawning upon his face.  Truthfully, he didn't mean to make her flush with embarrassment - what she was doing reminded him of his little sister when their family went to the aquarium.  Another laugh left his lips, as he held out his hand for her to shake.

"Seojun Tsoi.  If I recall, you're Chiyo, right?  The Ultimate Chess Player?"

“Th, that’s right!” Chiyo can’t help but feel bashful. He didn’t need to remember her name, but he did it anyway! “It’s nice to meet you,” she says, bowing slightly. “Aha, you must have a pretty good memory.. You.. You’re a student of Hope’s Peak Academy too right? Is it okay if I ask what your talent is?”

"It's more than alright."  Another chuckle left his lips, as he flipped his hand back towards his side, noticing that the young female didn't accept the handshake.  "Though, I will say this.  Don't feel like I'm scary just because my title is the Ultimate Internet Troll.  I'm a nice guy; I promise."

"U, Ultimate Internet Troll... I.. I see..?" She doesn't really see, but she supposes it's not really her place to assume things about other people. What could he have possibly done to earn that title? And moreover to have been accepted to Hope's Peak? Ah, she notices she didn't take his handshake, and silently shames herself to not doing so. That must have seemed so impolite. She shakes the thought from her head, thinking about something like that is counterproductive, probably. "Um," she thinks of what to say for a moment, "It's, it's nice to meet your acquaintance.." She bowers her head slightly. It seems like she doesn't know what else to say.

She looks down and subconsciously starts playing with her hair. She watches the strands slowly untangle themselves in her hands. What should she say? She’s not sure what to do in this situation. Her eyes fall to the side and she think about some of the interviews that she’s been involved in, and decides to ask one of their questions.

“U, um...” She hesitates, wondering if it’s really okay to ask a question like this. She looks up to him, trying to look him in the eyes. “So, M, Mr. Tsoi, tell me about yourself.............  i, if you’d like..”

Another sheepish smile crosses Seojun, and he couldn't help but let out another quiet chuckle.  He didn't know what to say at first, because it had looked like she wanted to say something for a good few minutes.  He had decided to wait to give a response until she said what she wanted to said.  It was alright that she didn't see the handshake; maybe she wasn't a handshake person.

"About myself?  Sure, I can do that."  He flashed the girl another smile, sitting down, before offering to sit next to him.  "Something about me that a couple probably picked up on; I'm actually from South Korea."

Chiyo takes the seat next to him after pointing at herself for a second confirming that he’s offering for her.

“I see,” Chiyo responded, “It... did seem like your name came from that region.” She clears her throat a bit, getting a bit nervous from sitting next to him. “You grew up there, right? Um, what was it like?” She nervously avoids eye contact, although it seems like she’s trying to look at him as much as possible. Her eyes keep falling down to her hands in her lap, twisting her hair in her fingers.

"South Korea, at least the part I grew up in was...full of life."  The man mused, looking up towards the ceiling for a moment.  "Sure, there were some mean kids here and there, but overall; I got along with mostly everyone there.  The culture's different, but another thing that they did was festivals.  They did them at least every season; my sister and I would often go to them when we had the chance."

The man turned over towards the Chess Player, with a gentle smile dawning on his face.  "Even though I'm half-Japanese, I've actually never been to Japan.  Is it busy there?"

Chiyo nods while listening to him. While talking about his past, Seojun seemed so reminiscent, like maybe he misses that place.

“I’m sure there are busy and... less busy places in Japan,” Chiyo says after thinking about it for a moment. She smiles a bit regretfully. “I grew up in a city so it was busy, but I um, didn’t spend a lot of time experiencing it for myself, I, I think.”

“It’s interesting that you’re half Japanese though, my father’s parents were English immigrants. S, so I’m fully Japanese, but by blood I suppose I’m n.. not fully?” She smiles awkwardly before letting out a light laugh. “Aha, s, sorry I really don’t know what I’m saying..”

The man before Chiyo listened intently to her own explanations.  While they were almost like short little rambles, he did learn some information - she was actually born under American blood, but she was born and grew up in the country of Japan.  Seojun nodded a couple of times, giving a small smile.

“No need to be sorry, Chiyo.  I get it, I do.  Does that mean you also speak English as well as Japanese?”  He tilted his head slightly.  He was genuinely curious about this, oof.

“Yes, b, but not because of my father. His parents were immigrants but he didn’t visit England much.” Chiyo thought for a moment, tilting her head a bit. “He, um... didn’t speak English much growing up, but ended up learning it pretty fluently for his jobs..” She smiles. It seems like Chiyo enjoyed talking about her dad or something.

“B, but me on the other hand..” She shyly waved her hand, brushing away the importance of the topic. “I really only know it because I... I keep up with my studies, ahah..”

“...I, um, I also traveled a lot, so it’s convenient to know...” she quietly adds.

Once again, the blonde listened intently to Chiyo’s explanation.  So she only grew up speaking Japanese...That wasn’t a problem at all; he knew that people learned languages differently.  If anything, keeping up with her studies meant that she was diligent and...well, studious. Seojun couldn’t help but smile, giving her another one of his chuckles.

“Travel a lot?  That seems fun.  Can I ask, where’s your favorite place you’ve been to?”

Chiyo blushes... Seojun's soft smiles and laughs.. they make her feel a bit self conscious.

"Ah, I realize it is probably privileged for me to say, but I really don't enjoy travelling at all..." She thinks about the times she traveled to countries, sometimes not even knowing where, to win tournaments and have interviews and return home. "It's.... just a hassle, I think..."

His eyes widened just a bit, nodding understandingly.  “Oh, I get it.  Traveling’s not for everyone.”  The Internet Troll scratched the back of his head, a sheepish smile dawning on his face.  “It can be a hassle, like you said.”

“So, besides playing chess, what do you like to do in your spare time?”

“Hmm..” What does she like doing? O, oh......... well, she d, definitely shouldn’t mention.. that. Chiyo’s cheeks turn red. “Oh....” She let’s out the sound before she could stop herself. “Oh! Oh sorry, th, that’s!” She needs to stop thinking about such perverse things!! She waves her hands, waving away the her thoughts. “I, um! I like watching movies and r, reading books and, a, and stuff..”

She looks to the side and tightens her lips. That was such a weird reaction to a completely innocent question. “S, sorry..”

Seojun, to be quite honest, was still a little oblivious to subtle hints about when someone was thinking perverse things.  He could pick up some flirtatious lines, like how Ethan had been flirting with her only moments ago.  However, he could only assume that she was just embarrassed about making him wait, which he didn't mind.

"Don't be sorry, Chiyo."  He gave her a soft pat on the head.  Dmitri didn't seem to mind headpats; hopefully she wouldn't mind?   "Those are great thing to do!  Any particular genre you enjoy?"

At the question Chiyo's eyes light up! She mindlessly takes Seojun's hand into her own and hold it excitingly. "A, ah! W, well! I greatly enjoy horror and dramatic stories! They're so thrilling and exciting!" She smiles it almost seems like she's holding back a number of feverish essays of appreciation.

"A, and most of all I love r, rr... ro..." She hesitates, realizing she's so rudely and suddenly taken Seojun's hand into her own. "A, ah!! S, sorry!!!" She lets go immediately lets go and blushes all sorts of shades. "Sorry, th, that was s, sudden, aha.."

Seojun is indeed a bit surprised by how the shorter girl suddenly took his hand into hers, but even then, he still smiled in the process.  She was just really excited to discuss something that she loved; who wouldn't be?  "Don't apologize; there's nothing wrong with liking those things."

Her face was flushing a lot though.  He frowned just a bit, putting the back of his hand on her forehead.  "Are you okay, Chiyo?  Your face is red..."

"A, am I okay??"  Chiyo looks away in embarrassment. "S, sorry, I'm f, fine.. There's, um, no need to worry about me!" Her heart is going crazy. Touching his hand was way too bold.. Bolder than anything she's done before, she thinks. She can still imagine the texture and warmth of it.. Ah, she's!! blushing again!!

His frown deepened slightly.  He remembers how his sister would often deny that she had a fever...to be fair, in a more aggressive manner than the Chess Player, but they were for the same reason.  Both of them didn’t want the blonde to worry about them.   Then his eyes looked over, and he saw how the loose strand of hair moved around, this time into the shape of a heart.

Ah.

He gave a gentle smile down to the young female, resting the hand atop of her hair, petting it slightly.  “People worry because they care, y’know.  Like Leon for example.  He tries to take care of everyone because he does care, yeah?”

"Ah, y, yeah..." Feeling Seojun's hand patting her head made her feel so small.. People worry because they care? That's difficult for Chiyo understand.. especially when they never seemed worried.

Suddenly their interaction came to an abrupt stop as something strange happened.

[royal-despair-threads]

Raiden & Chiyo [Prologue]

Raiden was wandering around the room, trying to become more familiar with it. Despite being trapped here, he was pleased that he was meeting new people. Most of the people he had spoken to so far were quite nice!

He looked into one of the tanks and watched as the small fish flickered about. Seeing them so content to just swim around brought a smile to his face. It was a nice distraction to all of the chaos going on around him.

Chiyo noticed the unfamiliar face lurking around the fish tanks. He's a large guy, and rather intimidating purely because of that. A part of her wants to avoid anything like what could happen with that red-headed girl. Although, there was something different in the look in his eye. She wanted to say something.

"Um.." She regrets opening her mouth as soon as she does, but she has to follow through with it now.. "Th, they're koi..." Her voice gets softer at the end of her statement..

Raiden heard the soft voice and turned his head in the direction it was coming from. He smiled warmly at the girl standing beside him. He could tell that she was a little scared of him, but he was more than used to this reaction.

"They're very beautiful, aren't they?" Raiden replied, turning his gaze back to the fish tank. "We have a koi pond at my sumo stable, out in the private gardens. I hope someone fed them today."

He spoke in a soft tone, hoping that it would reassure the girl that he wasn't a threat.

"At your sumo stable..." Chiyo echos.. With his appearance and attire, it's probably logical enough to assume that he at least is a student of something like that. "Uhm-" She catches herself in her own thoughts, "Y, yes.. They're quite pretty...  " He seems so nice, worried about the fish despite his current situation. She relaxes a bit.

"...." It takes her a moment before she decides to introduce herself. "I, um, my name is Chiyo Oshiro.. Is it okay if I ask what your name is?"

Raiden turned to face Chiyo again, the warm smile still present on his round face. "It's a pleasure to meet you Chiyo-san, despite these current circumstances." He bowed his head politely before continuing.

"My name is Raiden Asashoryu. I'm the SHSL sumo wrestler. Am I correct in believing you also attend Hope's Peak Academy? It seems as though many of us trapped here are from there."

She smiles, this guy really is nice! It seems like she can relax a bit. “I um, I’m the Ultimate Chess Player.. It’s really strange that so many of us are students of Hope’s Peak.. Do you think the school is under attack? Or maybe.. maybe we’re hostages..” Ah, she’s not as relaxed anymore.

Ah, a chess player! Raiden would have to ask her if she wanted to play a game sometime. He wasn't very familiar with chess, but he was pretty competent at shogi!

He nodded in agreement, his smile fading slightly. "It is quite strange. I do not know what is happening, but whoever took us must have a reason. I just hope nobody has gotten hurt in the process."

Raiden noticed Chiyo tense up and his smile returned. "Do not worry, Chiyo-san. I'm sure we will be getting out of here soon. With so many talented students here, someone must know that something bad has happened to us. I am sure help is on the way right now."

“Y, yeah, you’re probably right.” Chiyo’s mind can’t help but think about the possibilities, figuring out all the moves that could lead to a loss. “Thank you...” She doesn’t want to think about this anymore.

“Um, you said you were the Ultimate Sumo Wrestler right? Wh..” she tries to think of something. “.... What is that like?”

Raiden beamed at her. "Anytime, Chiyo-san. Just know that everything is going to be okay." Okay, that was a bit of a white lie, but he knew it was what the chess player wanted to hear.

He clasped his hands together. "It's a lot of hard work, but it is well worth it. Getting into the ring is the highlight of my week. I am dedicated to the sumo lifestyle and everything that comes with it. What about you, Chiyo-san? What is it like being a chess player?"

“Ah, that sounds nice,” she mumbles, knowing that Raiden has such a passion for something really is n.. nice. He seems so calm and peaceful.

“Being a chess player,” Chiyo thought for a moment, putting a finger to her chin. “I, I’m not sure what to say about it. It takes patience, and, and waiting for the opponent to make the next move makes you filled with anticipation. Although, it’s not particularly exciting, I’d say ahaha..”

Raiden nodded his head. "It is. There is nothing nicer than pursuing your dreams. I am thankful that I have been able to pursue mine."

He folded his arms. "You must be a very patient person, Chiyo-san. That is a very admirable skill that not many have these days."

Raiden chuckled softly at her remark, joining in on her laughter. "Even so, there is joy to be found even in the most mundane tasks. For example, I quite enjoy cleaning. Of course, chess is much more engaging than cleaning is, I'm certain."

His smile grew as he gazed over at her. "Perhaps we could play a match together sometime soon. I'm certainly not as good as you are, but it would still be an enjoyable game I'm sure."

"Would you like to play with me sometime?" It'd be interesting to see what kind of moves and techniques that he would make. Chiyo pauses for a moment, thinking about her question again. "A, actually never mind.. It p, probably wouldn't be too much fun.." Her winning streak is has never been broken. Knowing the outcome probably wouldn't be fun for him..

Raiden smiled happily and nodded. "I would love to play a game of chess with you, Chiyo-San! That sounds like it would be quite enjoyable."

With a smile still on his face, the sumo wrestler shook his head. "It doesn't matter if I lose, it will still be a fun game. Besides, I'm interested to see the strategies you use."

Chiyo smiles, but still feels somewhat hesitant. Her hands goes to fiddle with her cravat as she tries to think of something to say. “I’m.. I’m glad, thank you...” She couldn’t think of anything of value.

Raiden is being so nice to her, she almost doesn’t know how to respond.. or even return the favor. Should she offer to sumo wrestle with him like he offered to play chess with her??? Instead she just keeps her mouth shut in an uneasy smile.

[royal-despair-threads]

Raiden & Izaya [Prologue]

After some time, Raiden found himself in the gym. He wasn't usually the sort of person to work out, his training regime consisted of more traditional sumo exercises, but he was curious to see what was in this room. After some searching, he heard the sound of shuffling coming from the closet in the room.

Approaching the closet with caution, Raiden spoke out loud.

"Hello? Is somebody in there?"

He didn't want to end up getting into a deadly situation, especially not when he was in a place like this.

Izaya nearly did a full forward roll as the voice made them sit up stupidly fast in surprise. Their stomach lurched and they nearly gagged at the momentary pain. Heck. Someone was here! What should they do?! "....U-Um....yes?" Came the obviously post-crying session voice from inside. Izaya wiped their eyes red trying to get rid of any tears.

Raiden heard the familiar voice coming from the closet and approached it slowly, not wanting to scare the other.

"It's alright, it's just me. May I open the door?" Raiden's voice had a tinge of concern to it. He could tell that Izaya had been crying. He hoped that the other was alright.

Oh! Raiden. Izaya nodded before realising, of course, that Raiden couldn't see them. "Y-yeah, o-of course!" They tried to sound happy but hooo boy was it forced.

Raiden opened the door and gazed at Izaya. Oh yes, it looked like they had been crying all right. Raiden felt sorry for them. "Are you okay, Izaya? Do you want to talk?" He spoke in a gentle manner as he crouched beside the other.

"I, um, w-well, I-" they babbled, avoiding eye contact, "I d-don't want to be a burden on you too, Raiden-san..."

Raiden gave them a warm smile and shook his head. "You will not be a burden to me, Izaya-san. Besides, it is better to talk about your worries than let them stay inside you. Please, tell me what is wrong."

Well, here goes nothing. Izaya exhaled, "I....Okay. I'm, um, I'm convinced that everyone...well, that I'm-" Inhale. Exhale, "That I'm just a burden on everyone. I know I'm a coward. I....Whenever I try to be brave I just m-make things worse. And all- all I do is make t-trouble for everyone, just like I b-burdened Leon-!" Tears could hardly wait to roll down Izaya's cheeks again, putting their previous effort to shame. "I-I'm sorry.." they apologised while they wiped their eyes again.

Raiden listened as the other spoke, his mouth in a neutral expression. He felt for Izaya - there was nothing worse than feeling like you were a burden on someone else.

As Izaya began to cry, Raiden gently began patting their back. "You have nothing to be sorry about. Izaya, the situation we are in is a frightening one. The fact that you feel scared is only natural, but believe me when I say you are braver than you think you are."

He gazed at them with his bright green eyes, his smile growing as he talked.

"You are not a burden either. You haven't started any fights or caused trouble on purpose. All you have done is made the room brighter just by being in it." Raiden gave them a warm smile as he remember how Izaya was in the anteroom while they were playing games. "Your compassion and kindness towards others is anything but a burden. We need more people like you Izaya, and not just in this terrible place."

He wrapped his arm around Izaya and pulled them into kind of a side hug.

Izaya really, truly, didn't know how to react; they'd genuinely never been in this position. Having someone so sweet tell you such wonderful things, it was so new to Izaya that they couldn't even offer a response for a moment. The back patting and the pull into a side hug were also very new but absolutely welcome. Raiden's so nice, I don't want to become another burden to them too....but....

Thinking it over, Izaya finally wrapped their shaky arms around Raiden in turn, "Th-thank you, Raiden-san....! We-! We need m-more people li-like you too-!" they began crying out loud again, apologising in between sobs for getting Raiden's shoulder wet with their tears.

Raiden wrapped his arms around Izaya and pulled them into a warm hug. He didn't care about the tears soaking his clothes, he just wanted to make sure that the other was alright. "You don't need to apologise, it is quite alright Izaya-san..."

His smile grew even more when Izaya said those kind words to him. It felt nice to know that. Raiden just continued to hold Izaya close, letting them cry all of their tears out.

"Maybe we can work together to make this place more peaceful..." he said softly.

"....Yeah....I....I'd l-like that." They let out a shaky, sob-soaked laugh. Just being held and letting everything out felt strangely wonderful. And their theory about Raiden was 100% confirmed.

They really are just as cuddly, if not cuddlier, than a teddy bear.

"......Raiden? C-Can I ask you so-something?"

Raiden smiled again and chuckled along with Izaya. Raiden was happy that he was helping out with hugs! He didn't get to hug other people too often. It wasn't really what sumos did to each other in the stable. So when he was able to, he gave really good hugs.

"Of course, you can ask me anything Izaya-san."

"Do...Um....Do you think we'll all be alright? I mean....Eth-...Ethel is....." Just remembering the way everything unfolded during her death made them want to burst into tears again, "I keep....I keep thinking, I won't-!" they took a moment to breathe. Raiden could probably feel Izaya shaking even more, "I....that I won't m-make it if...if someone decides to-!" they couldn't even finish the sentence.

Raiden thought for a moment. He genuinely wasn't sure what was going to happen to them. After Ethel's horrific death, he was almost certain that this wasn't going to end well. At least one person out of everyone here would be willing to kill to get out, whether he liked the idea of that or not.

He felt Izaya beginning to shake and he held the other closer. Raiden hushed them gently and gave them a reassuring smile. "Nothing is going to happen to you Izaya-san, I promise I will be here to protect you."

He gazed down at the floor, a serious expression on his round face. "Even if someone thinks about doing the unthinkable, I will make sure nobody gets hurt. I can stop them. I won't let anyone else end up like poor Ethel-san."

In any other circumstance, Izaya would probably have written such a declaration off as just an attempt to make them forget about the living nightmare they were in. But this was Raiden. And the way he spoke, and the tone he took, made Izaya honestly want to believe him. It even, dare they think it, want to be stronger so they could help him. Izaya let out a tiny sound somewhere between a sigh and an exhalation, "I....I really think you can do it, Raiden-san."

Izaya let Raiden go for a second so they could wipe their eyes a little, looking back into those frankly enchanting green eyes with their own mismatched orbs of rich hazel and cloudy blue, "I...I know I'm scared. And I'm not that strong. Everything terrifies me whether it has a right to or not. But....but no matter what, I don't want to let you down. I don't- I don't want the others to have to keep worrying about me l-like I'm a wounded kitten!" They took Raiden's hand in their own tiny hands, completely dedicated to what they were saying, "I-! I w-want to be someone you're proud to call your friend-!"

Raiden's serious expression softened into his familiar warm smile as Izaya said that little hopeful sentence to him. He hoped he could do it, he really did. Considering the type of people he was dealing with here though, he did have his doubts, but Izaya was helping to make him feel more confident. Raiden was so happy he had them for support.

He gazed into the other's eyes as he spoke.

"You are no going to let anyone down, Izaya-san, especially not me. No matter what you do." Raiden was a little taken aback when Izaya held his hand. It wasn't a gesture he was familiar with, or used to. It felt nice though, so he let the other hold his hand. Raiden couldn't help but beam when Izaya told him how they wanted to make him proud. The sumo took his free hand and gently petted Izaya on their head.

"I am already more than proud to call you my friend." Raiden said in a gentle tone. "And nothing is going to change that."

Izaya couldn't look away from those eyes; gosh, they're mesmerised. They felt so much stronger already just knowing they had Raiden's support. Naturally, with their constant anxiety, Izaya already knew they'd eventually spiral and likely think themselves responsible for burdoning Raiden with their meltdowns, but for now, Izaya truly did want to get better.

"Th-Thank you, Raiden-san-! Your s-support is the best thing I co- I could hope for-!"

Izaya realised they were still holding Raiden's hand and gently let go, "Ah, um," Their cheeks flushed bright pink, "I-I-! S-Sorry, I didn't mean to- Um-! I um-!" They're babbling again. However, the flush in their cheeks only got more noticable as Raiden pet their hair. At this rate, they're going to get addicted to head pats. They did calm down a bit though with said pats.

Raiden could tell that Izaya was the type of person who would probably have a mental breakdown or two, and he didn't mind that! In fact, he was even starting to think of ways that he could help them control their anxiety. Perhaps through meditation? That always helped with him!

"Any time, my friend! I'll always be here for you!"

Raiden chuckled softly when the other let go of his hand. He was blushing a little bit too - he wasn't exactly used to this sort of contact. "Oh, it is okay! You do not need to apologise." He continued to pet the other's hair - it was quite soft and spiky. He could tell that Izaya was calming down through them, so that was a good sign. After a while, he brought his hand down and smiled at Izaya.

"Alright then, should we head out of here, or do you wish to stay inside here a little longer? What would you like to do?"

Raiden you're so blessed, I love you. HEaring Raiden call Izaya 'friend' outright had the fluffy blonde mess ready to cry again. At least this time, however, it'd be tears of joy. Friend! They had a new friend!! Verbally confirmed and stated!!!

"Friend....!" Izaya uttered it so sweetly, as if paletting the word for the first time. Sure, they had a few close online friends, some of whom they'd met for a day or so at most, but wow!! A new friend! One who's here, who's real, and tangible!  And they gave good hair pets.

"Ah, I'm glad you didn't um, that I wasn't being too rude-!"

When posed with the question of what next, Izaya looked conflicted. They didn't really know what they wanted to do. They did know one thing however,

"I....I don't mind but....c-can...can I stick with you for a while? I'd feel a lot better not being alone- Ah! Sorry, that's me being selfish again-!"

This whole interaction is so blessed oml. Izaya probably didn't know, but Raiden had a habit of calling everyone friend. However, in this case Raiden truely meant it! He definitely felt closer to Izaya than anyone else trapped here, except for maybe Takeshi.

Raiden smiled warmly and nodded. He was pleased to see the that the other was so happy. It really was nice to make new friends! Raiden's only other friends were the other sumos back at the sumo stable. While they were all lovely people, he was thrilled to be making new friends outside of sumo wrestling.

"Not at all. I appreciate it, actually."

Raiden smiled and nodded at their request to stay together. "That is perfectly fine with me, Izaya-san. You are not being selfish at all. I could use some company, especially from such a good friend like you. Tell me though, do you wish to stay here or travel somewhere else?"

"Mmmm....I...We shouldn't s-stay here. It's well..." They looked around at all the supplies and the very tight, very personal small space, "...r-rather cramped. Ehe..."

They nervously got to their feet, even offering Raiden a hand up, "Let's go have fun, right?" They asked, a flushed smile showing as a testiment to how hardy they were trying already to be the best friend they could be.

Raiden chuckled softly, his rumbling voice echoing in the small space. "Indeed, perhaps we could step outside and find somewhere else to go?"

Raiden smiled back at Izaya and took their hand. As he did, he carefully stood up, not wanting to bring the other down accidentally. "Have fun? That sounds like a good idea! Is there anywhere you want to go in particular?"

Raiden's idea of fun was going to the kitchen and cooking or finding somewhere quiet to meditate. He wondered what Izaya enjoyed doing.

Izaya nodded, "Hmm, w-well, for fun I usually go online or um, I look at stars and stuff, but I guess-"

Their stomach grumbled pretty loudly. It hit them immediately,

"Ah, I never even got to eat my crepe-!" Izaya you haven't eaten in too long, eat smth!!!

Raiden gave Izaya a warm smile. "Well perhaps we can go and check the kitchen to see if there are any crepes left! I did make some chankonabe with Liz-San before, so there is plenty of that left on the stove if you want some."

Raiden has no problem with getting something to eat again. As part of his regular schedule, he was eating pretty much throughout the day.

"Chakonabe? I've never tasted that..." Just the mere mention of food made Izaya's stomach rumble again. They very quickly agreed, "I'd love some! D-Do you mind getting food too though? I can hold off eating if you'd um, if you'd rather do something else, Raiden-san!"

"It's quite a delicious dish. I made both a vegetarian and regular version of the meal as well, since Liz-san is a vegetarian."

Raiden nodded, another chuckle escaping his lips. "I'm always happy to get more food, Izaya-san. Now then, let's go together!"

Izaya smiled brightly at the chuckle. Oh gosh, that's so cute!  They followed after Raiden, "Yeah! Together!"

They're positively beaming! Food and a friend to eat with, this is the best!

Raiden made his way to the kitchen with Izaya by his side. Once they entered, Raiden went over to his big pots of chankonabe. "Ah, Izaya-san! Would you like the regular chankonabe, or the vegetarian one?"

Izaya followed Raiden, anticipating the food awaiting them. Laying eyes on the chankonabe for the first time, they already began fighting the urge to salavate, "Oh, I'll h-have the regular, if that's okay!" They're pretty much doing the anime, starry-eyed 'wooow!!' expression.

Raiden chuckled and scooped up a big hearty bowl of chankonabe for Izaya. It was filled with all sorts of delicious ingredients, including chicken, fish, beef, daikon, carrot, leek and bok choy.

Still smiling at Izaya, he handed them the bowl. "I hope you enjoy it!" With that, he got himself another bowl of the stew. He was more than eager to have another helping of it.

Izaya eagerly recieved the bowl, thanking Raiden as they stared into the mixure. The smell alone was intoxicating, "It smells soooo good~!" They grabbed some utensils, handing some to Raiden too, "I can't believe you made this! I mean, it's l-like magic!"

Raiden beamed. "I'm glad you think so! It's my own special recipe, it's taken me many months to perfect it."

He thanked Izaya for the utensils and was about to chow down when he stopped himself. "Should we go to the dining room?"

"Oh, y-yeah, we probably should!" Izaya felt pretty stupid for not suggesting it sooner. They let Raiden go first and followed after, sitting at whichever table Raiden picked, "So, um, do you usually make all your food?"

Raiden sat down at a table, placing his bowl in front of himself. "Yes, I do. I usually cook for all of the other sumos at my stable too. I suppose I've become the assigned chef." He chuckled. "It probably helps that I have experience when it comes to cooking."

Izaya listened while giving the food a taste- Oh wow, it's good! "This tastes great!" They commented, then continued, "I guess um, you've been cooking for a while then? Did you ever w-wanna um, like, be a chef or anything?"

Raiden smiled happily. "I'm glad you like it! There is plenty more left if you want seconds or thirds later."

He nodded, eating a few mouthfuls of the stew before continuing. "Yes, I've been cooking since I was a child. My parents both own a restaurant a few hours out of Tokyo. When I retire from sumo wrestling in the future I wish to open up my own restaurant too. That way, I can share my chankonabe recipe with everyone!"

"That's such a wonderful idea!" Izaya ate another mouthful then continued, "My grandma tried to teach me how to cook once, but I ended up ruining her best bowl. Who knew rice was so hard to make?"  It sounded like they should be joking, but their tone definitely didn't say they were joking. Izaya piped up, "Is it just you and your parents, Raiden-san?"

Raiden chuckled. "Well, if you ever wish to help me cook, you're more than welcome to Izaya-San." He was concerned about the others lack of cooking skills. Perhaps he could teach them a thing or two?

Raiden nodded. "Yes, well, it was. I moved out a few years ago and I live in a sumo stable now. The other sumos are like my brothers and the stable master is like a second father to me."

"Ah, I'd love to, but I just seem to be um, good at ruining things really. Unless- uh. Unless they're exploding." They tried to laugh but it just sounded like they were making fun of their own misery, "It must be really nice to-to have people like that in your life. I always wanted a brother or sister."

Raiden gave Izaya a kind smile. "I'm certain you will to a fantastic job. I will be there to help you if need be. What is your favorite food? Perhaps we could make that together."

Raiden nodded. "I have to say, I was the same. I'm an only child. My brothers at the sumo stable are just as close as real brothers to me. It is really nice to have them around."

"I.....Thanks, Raiden-san. That m-makes me really happy." They smiled warmly, "I guess mooncakes are my all time favourite, but um, I dunno how to make them." They admitted.

"I wish I had friends so close. I mean, outside of here I don't really have anyone I can meet. Well, offline I mean..." They lamented, forcing a smile, "Ah but that's um, it's depressing so! Um, have you always wanted to be a suma wrestler, Raiden-san?"

Raiden nodded again. "I do not know how to make those, but I will try my hardest to make them with you if that is what you wish!"

He hummed softly at the others words. "Well, you have plenty of friends in here now, Izaya-san, including me."

When asked about being a sumo wrestler, Raiden smiled. "Ever since I was a child I've wanted to be a sumo wrestler. I used to go to matches with my father and I would watch it whenever it came on TV. I've also been in sumo wrestling clubs since elementary school. What about you, Izaya-san? When did you start making fireworks?"

"Friends..." The mere sentiment alone was such good comfort. They listened interestedly as Raiden talked about their childhood love of sumo wrestling, "That's so sweet!" Izaya fluffed their hair up for a second in thought, "Well, mom's a scientist so she used to help me study when I was really little, but her um, she works as a physicist for a Japanese Research lab, and d-dad is a watercolour artist, so I h-had to get into chemistry all on my own." Their face lit up a little, "Grandma was really supportive, especially when I was confused about what I wanted to be when I was older. She's the one who gave me the idea to look into making fireworks."

Izaya said something in Chinese, then translated, "Shoot for the stars, if you miss, you'll land on the Moon! Grandma always used to say that too. I guess that's why I like space so much?" They looked to Raiden shyly, "Ah, sorry, I got carried away! Um, I guess what I'm saying is, I started making fireworks when I was 14. Mom would supervise me til I made them to uh, perfection. In her words.."

Raiden listened as Izaya explained how they got into making fireworks. He was happy to hear that they had so much support in their life! "It's always good having such supportive family members. If it wasn't for my parents taking me to sumo wrestling matches as a child, I would never have become the person I am today."

He smiled as Izaya explained that Chinese saying. "That's a good motto to live by. You have to try your hardest in everything you do, even if you end up somewhere you didn't expect to be."

He shook his head. "It's quite alright, Izaya-san. I would love to see your fireworks someday. I love fireworks! I used to watch them at night during the summer festivals in my hometown. It brings back a lot of happy memories for me..."

His smile grew as he remembered those fun festivals he used to attend with his friends and parents. He hoped once this was all over, he would be able to attend one again.

Glad that Raiden wasn't put off by all their blabbering, Izaya gave him a smile, "You like festivals then? What kind are your favourite, Raiden-san?"

Raiden nodded in agreement. "I do, my favourite are the summer festivals. We have one in my hometown every year, but I also enjoy the Mitami Matsuri festival in Tokyo. The lanterns looks so beautiful glowing at night. There's plenty of food and performances too."

He tilted his head towards Izaya. "What about you? Do you have a favourite type of festival?"

"That sounds lovely! I haven't been to any festivals besides the ones back home really. My fireworks go worldwide but um, I don't." Izaya looked a little sad that they couldn't see their fireworks overseas or even travel, but they knew what they were like; heights terrify them, they're scared of planes and boats. Ironically.

"I think my favourite festival is simply The Spring Festival. I mean, I get to see my fireworks AND pig out on mooncakes." They could drool just thinking about mooncakes, "I remember one year, me and Dad both made so many Paper-Cuts for decoration, we had to give a bunch away. They wouldn't fit around the house..." Izaya sighed.

Raiden sighed softly, rubbing the back of his neck with his large hand. "...no, I suppose I'm not okay."

He gazed down at his feet, hanging his head in shame. "...they have my brother, and...I don't know what I'm going to do..." Tears began forming in the sumo's eyes and he tried to hide his face from the other.

Oh no! Izaya had almost forgotten about the photos from all the bathroom drama. Their expression fell, momentarily flashing with worry themselves as they remembered their grandmother, but right now? They needed to be there for Raiden.

"Raiden-san...I...I'm sorry. I w- I wish I could say everything will, um b-be okay, but I know....I know it's not." They gently put a hand on Raiden's shoulder to softly get him to turn back to them. If he did make eye contact with Izaya, he'd see that yeah, they're definitely scared too, but they're trying. They're trying.

"But....But your bro-other wouldn't want you to give up hope. He...I don't....I don't know your brother, b-but....but I bet if he were here, he'd be telling you the s-same thing my Grandma would be telling me; it's okay to n-not know what to do, as long as you do something."

Izaya broke eye contact for a second, deep in thought, then looked back to Raiden, "Raiden-san, you're strong. A-And kind. And wise too. N-no matter what you do to help, I kn-know it'll make your brother proud, n-no matter what happens...."

Raiden felt foolish. He had turned away from Izaya to hide his face. What sort of person did that make him? Not wanting to seem like a terrible friend, Raiden turned and faced Izaya. He had tears in his eyes that he was desperately trying to hold back.

Izaya was right, his brother wouldn't want him to give up like this. He would want him to keep going on, like they had done at the sumo stables together years ago. Hearing those kind words of encouragement from the fireworks maker made him smile, even when tears were falling down his cheeks.

"Thank you, Izaya-San. I...I needed to hear that. I'm certain your grandmother would be so proud of you too. Not just for not giving up hope, but for being such a kind friend."

With that, Raiden approached them and gave them a warm hug. Hopefully Izaya didn't mind, he just really needed a hug right now.

Seeing Raiden cry made Izaya's heart ache; Raiden's such a good person, he didn't deserve to have to be stuck here on a floating deathtrap. He should be home surrounded by his friends and family! The injustice of it made Izaya wish they had the power to send him home with just sheer willpower alone!

But right now Raiden needed a hug, and Izaya was more than happy to give him one. Returning the hug did momentarily remind Izaya that they needed to pick up their hoodie, wherever they wound up throwing it, but cheering Raiden up took precident right now.

"Thank you too, Raiden-san. I feel stronger when I'm around you." They admitted, thankful the hug was obscuring the blush they wouldn't need a mirror to tell was flush on their cheeks. "You give me the co-courage to be the best friend I can be.."

Raiden felt better having that hug. Sure, he was probably not supposed to show this sort of affection out in public as part of his keeping face business, but he'd already started crying so that was completely out the window right now. Besides, he felt comfortable showing emotions around Izaya.

He smiled happily when Izaya said they felt stronger around him. That made him feel good knowing he was having that affect on them. Even if he could help just one person, it would make this all worthwhile.

"I'm so glad I can give you that courage, Izaya-san." Raiden said softly, holding the other closer.

It felt...good to hold Izaya. He almost didn't want to let go. It was a strange feeling, one he wasn't entirely used to, but he liked it so it must be okay. Right?

Luckily for Raiden, Izaya wasn't exactly keen to stop the hug either. They felt a sense of safety in Raiden's arms, and in a way, being held by him made them feel almost at home. Knowing that they'd helped Raiden, even a little, made them feel legitimately happy; of course, they knew probably nothing they could do would make up for the feeling of actually being acknowledged and cared about that Raiden gave them, but Izaya would try their damnedest to repay that kindness.

They smiled, almost audibly, their voice soft, "I'm glad you're glad~!" They sounded almost playful. Not in the sense that they were messing with Raiden, lord no, but in the sense that they felt so at ease with him, even their stutter stopped surfacing as often.

Gosh, the hug felt so nice. Hugging Raiden was even better than they'd remembered from the gym closet. Perhaps because this time they were feeling better. They just hoped Raiden was enjoying the hug as much as they were...

Hooray, they were both enjoying the hug! Raiden just felt happy that Izaya seemed to be enjoying it as much as he was. If only he knew that was what Izaya was thinking! Raiden would have immediately told Izaya that just their presence was more than enough repayment.

Hearing Izaya sound so playful made Raiden chuckle. He'd notice the other had stopped stuttering too. He was happy that they felt so comfortable around him. Without thinking, Raiden brought his hand up and ran it through Izaya's hair. Oh, what was he doing? He'd just meant to pet their head lightly!

"Ah, I apologise!" He said, bringing his hand down quickly and blushing a little.

Perhaps this was too much. He was already showing more affection than he should be in a public place! Raiden let go of the other and stepped away slightly, clasping his hands together.

If Izaya  knew that, they'd probably be a blushing mess. Like they were right now; hair pats were great but when Raiden ran his hand through their hair, their face lit up like a christmas tree. Man, this must be why cats like petting so much, it's so nice!

Of course, they were a little worried as Raiden withdrew, had they done something wrong?! Aaah. Izaya shook their head, "Oh, n-no!! You don't have to worry, I um, I liked it!" Their own cheeks were looking pretty rosey too. Izaya tried to hide a flustered smile, playing with the tied sleeves of their jumpsuit around their waist, but alas, it was obvious they had really enjoyed the contact, "You...You give great hugs, Raiden-san."

Raiden felt a little relieved knowing that Izaya hadn't minded the head stroking. He thought he might have overstepped a boundary there! He noticed the firework maker's face seemed to be rather flushed too. Were they okay? Was it really warm in the room they were in?

When he was told he gave great hugs, Raiden felt his face redden even more. These two are so damn blushy it's adorable! He rubbed the back of his head with one of his big hands and gave the other a warm smile.

"Ah...thank you, Izaya-san. I'm glad you think so. I...if you ever need a hug, I will always be here to give you one."

"W-Wow, thank you, Raiden-san!!" They were so happy, they didn't even know what to do with themselves. Gosh they're so cute, aaaAAA. They shyly looked to the floor, and then the stalls, where they realised their hoodie had landed-....in one of the open toilets. Well, that was definitely going in the wash.

Izaya, however, didn't go to get it just yet. They felt rooted to the spot, like they didn't want to leave their close proximity to Raiden. Oh gosh that warm smile! It made them feel....a lot of things. For the most part, Izaya's cheeks flushed even pinker.

"S-So um, h-how do you feel?- AH! I -! I mean! Um! About um, things?!?" Damnit. They'd gone and flustered themselves.

Raiden continued to beam at the fireworks maker. It was so wonderful seeing them so happy! It lifted his own spirits up immediately. He noticed Izaya was glancing around the place. "Oh, are you looking for something?" Raiden asked. He wanted to help out in any way he could!

When asked how he felt, Raiden's smile fell slightly. "Well, I suppose I could be better...although it's nice to know that there are so many good people here." His smile returned again.

Despite this horrific situation, he felt better knowing there were good people here. For every Petra, there was at least 2 or 3 kind-hearted individuals.

"O-Oh, um, I just realised I threw my hoodie um...into the toilet." They admitted, sheepishly, but a lot more forthcoming than usual,  "Looks like I'm gonna be going with uh, with the guns on show til I can clean it..."

Oh no, Raiden's smile fell- Wait, there it is! Thank goodness. Izaya nodded, sharing that sentiment with a warm smile, "It really is. It's almost weird to think I've never been around this many people who wanna um, mostly be friends with me. And I'm really glad you're one of those friends, Raiden-san.."

They gave Raiden a sweet smile, "No matter what happens, I'm just so happy I have you here." They blushed, "Y-Y'know, for moral support, I mean-"

[royal-despair-threads]

Liz & Kai [Prologue]

Kai wandered around once more with his little black notebook and pencil in hand, a weak but gently smile upon his face. The game of truth or dare had seemingly boosted the group morale, or atleast, as far as he knew. He had kinda zoned out halfway during the game, just kinda staring at the floor and doing nothing. He might have even been asked a question without him realising, poor kiddo.

But that game in the past. Now he had to continue with his two main goals, beside the whole 'Getting out of here' thing. He wanted to meet he people here, and incase the worst of the worst happened, he needed to know their after death wishes. The boy was a gravedigger after all, one that wasn't worried about his own safety. Not having seen Elizabeth before, Kai approached the woman and quietly went to sit down next to her, unsure of how he would approach the start of this conversation.

Liz was in a bit of a daze, daydreaming and imagining what could have possibly caused everyone to be put in this situation, when suddenly she looked over and it seemed a boy had appeared next to her. She hadn't heard him approach but more than she was surprised she was curious about what had made him head over.  "Um..." She looked over at him curiously, "What's up...?"

The boy spoke with a bit of a German accent and less than stellar Japanese. While he was able to speak the language, some of the pronounciations were kinda off and he had a lot of pauses where he had struggled with what to say next. " Miss... " Oof, " Can I ask you.... A difficult question? " He looked up at her with those white eys, which both looked creepy, cute and... Kinda sad at the same time. The staring sure wasn't helping.

Now Liz was even more curious, and a bit unsettled, those eyes were quite... Something. "Y-yeah, of course."

The boy nodded and looked away, just now having realised he was staring. His eyes moved around the room as he once again tried to find something to focus on, eventually asking the question. " What are your after death wishes? What should I do with your body after you die? " He opened his notebook and got ready to write it down, revealing a few names and wishes on that page already, and probably dozens if not hundreds on the pages before.

She took a moment to think, Liz had thought about this before, but still hadn't quite decided yet. "Hmm... Well I guess... I would want to be eaten by animals?" She pauses and thinks for a bit more, "I don't really see any reason for a tombstone or a grave, it's not like I have anyone significant that would grieve over me when I die... So maybe something like a... I saw this thing once in a documentary... A Tibetan sky burial? I think it's called? Although I'm not sure how possible anything like that would be these days... I guess either that or being turned into beads..."

Disturbingly enough, Kai knew full well what a sky burial was. There were a lot of mountains in Germany after all, and a lot of stupid hykers. Sometimes, you got a sky burial without asking for it. The boy nodded along to her, eventually speaking up. " I think... I may be able to arange either. Or if we can use the... Bones, both. " Normally, he was actually for having specific places or objects to remember people by, but if she had no one that would grieve over her, then he saw no reason to limit her after deatrh wishes in the slightest. Well, it's not like he would limit them anyway. Because, those kinds of decisions were left to the living.

He wondered if she wanted to be eaten by animals so she coudl give back to nature, or just because she thought it would be cool. The boy t hen realised something important, he had forgotten to introduce himself, again... " I'm Kai... Kai Schmutz. Ultimate Gravedigger... It has been nice to meet you...? "

Liz smiles, "It's nice to meet you Kai, I'm Elizabeth, the Ultimate Surgeon, but you can call me Liz. You have a lot of entries in that journal, do you ask everyone about their death plans?"

The boy finished down writing Elizabeth's requests, with her name as well. The name and talent sounded familiar, maybe if he had studied up on the other students some more, he might remember them. But for now, Kai simply closed the little journal and put it back in his pocket. While he had no problem sharing the fact he was collecting them, unless giving permission, he wasn't going to intentionally tell others about other people's death plans. " Yes... Incase the worst... Happens here. I want to make sure... Everyone can have a proper rest... And the ones left behind can grieve. "

"That's... Noble of you." Concern appears on her face, "I can't help but feel that whatever is happening is more sinister than we might expect... I just hope it doesn't result in the death of any of us." A bit more irritated she continues, "and I hope that everyone is more considerate to each other's safety, I don't think we should risk injuring each other...especially since all of my medical supplies seem to be missing..."

Kai wasn't going to say it, but he was also missing his shovel, so he wouldn't be very useful at the moment. The boy just nodded along, seemingly agreeing with everything she was saying. Or he was just spacing out again and nodding along automatically, he did seem a bit tired. " I hope so... As well. "

Now Liz was really starting to get nervous, should she try to continue the conversation? Should she just awkwardly sit there until one of them decided to stand up and leave? Is he even paying attention? "U-Um... So what do you think for the others in this group, pretty crazy crowd, huh?"

It really wasn't her fault. Kai was just bad at talking to people. He was better at listening and giving his advice after people vented to him. The boy didn't know why people vented to him but oh well. " Oh... I think so? But they all seem very... Nice. Except the red lady."

"yeah everyone that I've talked to so far has for the most part been great! Although from what I've seen I can agree about the, ah, red lady. I wonder if she'll ever actually hurt anyone though... Like really hurt anyone... That would certainly become problematic for our group..."

"She punched... Manobu in the crotch." It had been a very bad day for Manobu, and for anyone being forced to watch that nut punch. God it was a painful sight.

Liz looks a bit embarrassed that she had somehow forgotten that incident maybe she was asleep during the whole situation?, "w-well I mean if she would ever break someones leg or something... Uh..." Liz pauses, struggling to regain her composure then blurts out, "sooo, how would you like your body to be treated when you die?"

For a moment, a very... Strange look appeared on Kai's face as he stared at Elizabeth. The look was one of confusion, but not the kinda confusion he had shown when he woke up here. It was the kinda confusion when someone was faced with a paradox, like something was said to them that was just, impossible.

"What do... You mean?"

For a while Liz thought that the conversation might be relaxing in a weird sort of way. A conversation about philosophy, about the acceptance of death and reminiscence of life, but it most certainly had taken a turn for the... Weird. Liz didn't really know what to say. "Oh, uh sorry if that wasn't something... Appropriate to ask, I just thought that since you asked me about mine I'd ask you about yours o-or something..."

There were characters like Takuma and pretended, because they were a bit silly. There were characters like Cici, who acted chuunibyou and pretended to be things she wasn't, for the joy of it. But when Kai looked at Elizabeth, and spoke those words so calmly, there wasn't a hint of pretending anywhere. The boy wasn't joking around, not trying to be funny or edgy or whatever. What he said was as true to him that the sky was blue, or that if he stepped of a building, he wasn't just suddenly going to fly.

The look in his eyes was equally creepy, sad and yet painfully innocent. Which made his words and the implications behind it all the worse. " It's alright... But... What do you mean when... I die? " He tilted his head slightly. " Can't you see... I'm already dead? "

Red flags. Red flags everywhere. Elizabeth now understood that Kai wasn't... Quite like the others. She contemplated taking his pulse and showing him that he was more alive than he thought, or, in a flash of irritation at the what she felt was the simple untruth of that statement, she momentarily thought of perhaps nicking his finger to show the red, oxygenated blood that signified life, but instead she just sat there a bit stunned. "I...see..."

But no she couldn't just sit there and let Kai be Kai, a walking corpse is medically impossible afterall. LIz concealed her annoyance and turned to Kai, "but don't you feel your pulse?"

" No... I don't have one... Anymore? " Elizabeth might get the feeling that, whatever evidence she threw against Kai, it wasn't really going to work. This might be something more serious than she could imagine. Well, he wasn't actually dead, but his belief sure as hell was strong.

Liz was rather irritated now, given the opportunity she could easily bring his fingers to his jugular or wrist to help him feel the gentle pulse of blood flowing through his arteries and veins. She wasn't going to give up just yet, she almost felt that it would betray her medical education if she did. But what to say next? "H-huh? But... Just bring your fingers to your neck, a little below your jaw, don't you feel a thump thump? When you get scrapes and bruises don't they heal? You certainly aren't rotting right now."

" You can't see... It huh? " Kai stared a bit ahead but he did as she asked, putting his fingers to right where she wanted them to be. But... Nothing. The boy just kept staring ahead, seemingly not feeling anything as he just shook his head. If she felt something, she would feel a slow but real heartbeat just fine.

[royal-despair-threads]

Takuma & Izaya [Prologue]

Looking over at the blonde haired heterochromatic, Takuma couldn't help but feel a slight pity for them. They seemed like they were on the verge of a nervous breakdown, and the arguments that had flooded the room earlier certainly wouldn't have helped that. So, getting to his feet, Takuma snuck up behind the kid, who he'd admittedly forgotten the name of, and placed a hand down on their head, ruffling their hair a bit.

"How're you doing, what'syerface?" He said in an upbeat tone. "You look like you're one comment away from bawling your eyes out."

To be completely honest, they'd looked like that almost the entire time Takuma had known them, but he wouldn't tell them that.

Oh mercy. Izaya didn't even see it coming. Because it all happened behind them really. They felt their hair compress, the feeling of the hand spooked them enough, but hearing a voice from nowhere along with the mysterious hand pushed Izaya right into scream territory.

"AaaaAAAAAAAAAAAA-!!" They yelped and spun around. Their feet got all tangled up and they fell onto their butt. Ow. They winced, looking up at Takuma. Well, at least it wasn't Petra. Didn't stop them being terrified,

"Plea-Please don't hurt me-!!!"

Well, that was certainly loud.

If years of performing and listening to loud music hadn't given him tinnitus, that screech probably did.

"Woah woah woah, calm down buddy. It's just me, your friendly neighbourhood Spiderman." Takuma spoke in a calm tone, a concerned glint to his eye. "I'm not gonna hurt you, everything is fine, relax."

"You're....Sp...Spiderman?" Izaya asked, clearly confused. Not that they knew who the heck Spiderman was anyway. They got to their feet witha  wobbily start, "I....Um.....okay." Izaya tried to fiddle with their sweatbands to calm down with they were still a little startled, "I'm Izaya....hhh.."

Giving the newly dubbed Izaya a more mischievous grin, Takuma reached out a hand to help pull them to their feet.

"I'm Takuma, nice to meet you." A slight chuckle emerged from him when Izaya began to fiddle with his wristbands. "I'm guessing you're not too good with people? No biggie, i'm not much of a people person myself if i'm being honest."

Izaya was thankful for the hand up, it definitely helped ease them a little, "No I....before this. Um. I never left......I didn't go out much...."

"Well that's no good, is it?" Takuma said, his voice taking on a goofy tone, similar to that of a certain purple dinosaur. "I guess Uncle Takuma's going to have to help you out!"

Taking a seat by Izaya, the guitarist crossed his arm, face stretching into an exaggeratedly serious expression. "Now, is there anyone here you want to introduce yourself to? Maybe a boy or girl you find cute?" He releases a gasp. "Do you have a crush on someone?"

Suddenly remembering that Izaya was anxiety in human form, he quickly backpedalled. "I'm only joking about that last bit, don't panic or anything."

"A-a-a-a cru-crush?!!? S-so soon?!?!" Izaya wheezed embarrassedly; oh god, DID they have a crush?! No, surely not?! But if Takuma brought it up there's probably SOMETHING that suggests they do-

"I-I don't think- I really don't think I have one, Takuma-san-!"

"Alright then, forget about the crush thing." Takuma said, attempting to look serious once more. "Is there anyone here you'd like to talk to, but you're too scared to approach?"

Izaya calmed down and tried to think rationally, "W-Well.....I don't really know. My goal....I mean....I want," they paused, trying to find the words, "I just, I really want to get alo-along with everyone..."

He couldn't help but pinch the bridge of his nose, a sigh emerging from behind his hand, not even thinking of how Izaya may interpret the action.

"...Okay, you want to get along with everyone, but you can't really do that if you don't talk to them all first. So, who haven't you talked to yet?" "...Not counting the unconscious guy." He quickly got rid of that loophole.

"U-Um...." They counted on their fingers, "S-Scary red head..." Petra, "The um, sh-shy girl with the braids.." Chiyo, "A-And um...the um, p-person in the g-greenish fancy suit..." Ethel. They tried to remember more, "Um....i d-don't remember the others y-yet, sorry..."

Giving the blonde a relaxed grin, Takuma couldn't help but giggle slightly. "It's fine, you don't need to apologise. Hell, I barely remember half the people I meet, let alone the people in here."

Thinking in his head of the trio of students Izaya had mentioned, a conclusion was quickly reached.

"Alright then, of those three, Chiyo seems the easiest for you to deal with right now." He pointed to the girl, patting the blonde lightly on the shoulder as he did so. "Now, she seems shy too, so you don't have to worry about coming off too nervous. I find that a good way to start a conversation is to make the other person laugh, so maybe try telling her a joke?"

The grin suddenly turned mischievous. "Please note that all this information will be on the test, so you may want to write it down."

Izaya. Tell a joke. Oh my god. They tried to comprehend the idea of just walking up and telling someone a joke, but the mention of the word 'test' made them feel sick to their stomach. They did grab their stomach a little, "Ugh....um, I h-hope not. Tests make me....s-super anxious.."

Giggling once more, Takuma ruffled Izaya's hair. "I was only kidding, you should take most of my random comments with a grain of salt, because they're almost always jokes." Still, looking at the anxiety they were feeling, Takuma couldn't help but pity them more.

"Alright, ixnay of the okejay. Maybe you could just go up to her and introduce yourself? She doesn't seem like the type to ignore you, or anything like that."

The hair ruffling wasn't unpleasent, though it was weirdly the one thing Izaya hadn't expected to get used to. Welp. They piped up, even raising their hand, "Q-Question?"

Pretending to put on a pair of glasses, Takuma tried to look as professional as possible.

"Yes, Izaya? What is it? I'd hate for you to be held back a year." Even his tone of voice was serious.

"U-um, w-what if she thinks I'm w-weird and never wants to t-talk to- to talk to me ever again, because," they stopped for an anxious breath, "B-Because she thinks I'm insa- insane and w-weird or m-maybe c-creepy, and what if she tells everyone else I'm weird and they s- they st-start to hate me anD-!!"

Takuma quickly put his finger to his mouth, hushing Izaya as he ruffled their hair lightly.

"Relax, deep breath in..."

"Deep breath out..."

Giving them a nervous grin, Takuma couldn't help but encourage them.

"Look, the hardest part of any situation is the wait beforehand. Your mind will come up with hundreds of over the top situations, each more ridiculous than the last. I'd know, I felt the same way going back to school for the first time." A strange sadness seemed to fill his eyes for a moment, before returning to normal. "The fact of the matter is, those things will only happen if you let them happen. If you go into the situation expecting a certain outcome, good or bad, you're more likely to get it."

"It's fine to be nervous. Hell, if you didn't get nervous, I don't think you could really be considered human. But letting your nerves control you is the worst thing you can do. You've got to acknowledge your worries, and face them head on, a smile on your face the whole time."

Taking a quick breath, Takuma went to continue, but suddenly decided to remain silent. He'd surely gotten the point across, he didn't need to say anything else.

what a hypocrite

Izaya had to admit, Takuma was makign a ton of sense. They were scared to let the worst happen, but maybe he was right; if they just tried to put aside the worst of the options, maybe only good would come of introducing themselves to the others. .....Unless unforseen circumstances kicked in and-

NO. BAD.

They took a deep breath,

"Takuma-san, um, what.....let's say things do go badly, what would I do to um....to fix it?"

Of course they'd ask that, what with their limitless anxiety.

"If things go badly, laugh it off. There's no reason to let stuff like that linger over you. Again, the worst thing you can do is let your nerves control you. If you don't just move on, it'll just make it harder to do so."

He would know.

"R-right.....Right..." Izaya didn't believe in themselves quite yet, but they began to believe in Takuma. "H-Hey um.....thank you."

"No problem kid. Oh, by the way, I never told you my talent, did I?" He pointed to himself, a cheeky grin on his face. "I'm the SHSL Acoustic Guitarist. I can play other guitars, but my acoustic music tops anything else."

"How about you? I never caught your talent."

"Oh! Th-that's pretty cool." They definitely thought Takuma suited his talent, "I make f-fireworks."

"Then i'm sure she'll be blown away by your charm." He said, the pun quite clearly intended, before hearing the gravedigger talk.

[royal-despair-threads]

Fina & Takuma [Prologue]

Fina noticed Takuma sitting all on his lonesome. She remembers what he said earlier. It wasn't the nicest thing to say but she understands that people say things they dont mean in stressful situations. Plus he's probably learned his lesson, or will learn, from what she heard from those who took his words to heart. She walks over to him, "Um, mister Takuma? How are you doing?"

Looking up at the pink haired wedding planner, Takuma couldn't help but dread the conversation that would follow his reply. So, naturally, he gave the girl a cocky smirk, and spoke confidently.

"Oh, yeah, everything's fine! I've only been embarrassed in an enclosed space with a bunch of future classmates, with no possible escape. Everything's just peachy!"

She gives a sigh of relief. "Oh that's good. I assumed someone would be feeling down after something like that. But it seems you have thicker skin mister Takuma! I'm glad it's not bothering you."

If she was in his situation she knows she'd be a crying mess. It's really outstanding to see someone handle it with care.

Giving the girl a wide grin, Takuma spoke happily.

"Oh, I'm definitely bothered by it! In fact, i'm sure if one more person yelled at me, i'd have an emotional breakdown!"

Well, at least he seemed happy.

She flinches at his words. She screwed up didn't she. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be rude, I'm not good at picking up on sarcasm which, I'm guessing, you were totally doing." She messes with her hair a bit. "And I won't yell at you. You seem to have realised your mistake and that's what's important. So just take deep breaths and try to calm down, ok?"

She really can't scold anyone who says they're about to have a breakdown. He's been punished enough. It's time for him to relax.

Taking a deep breath, Takuma exhaled slowly, in a manner that could almost be mistaken for a sigh. Wait, no, it was a sigh.

"Josefina, i'm fine. I was just over-exaggerating a bit, there's no need to get sad about it." His tone was rather calm compared to what it had been moments before, his figure seeming more relaxed, and his eyes looking up at her with concern. "You don't need to apologise, you were just making sure I was okay."

Getting to his feet, Takuma gave himself a quick dust off, giving the wedding planner a twirl before turning back to her with a cheeky grin. "See? I'm fit as a fiddle. Well, more like a guitar, but fiddle rolls off the tongue better."

She gives him a small smile. "I see, but if you want someone to talk to I don't mine lending an ear. I don't think I can provide good advice or be able to say something to make you feel better but hopefully just venting out can help you."

"Well, since you're offering..." a mischievous glint to his eye, Takuma speaks.

"Did you ever hear the tragedy of Darth Plagueis The Wise?"

Please take the bait, please take the bait...

Fina furrows her brows as she tries to think. "Hmmm, no I don't believe I have. What happened to Darth Plagueis?"

Hook, line, and sinker.

"I thought not. It's not a story the Jedi would tell you. It's a Sith legend. Darth Plagueis was a Dark Lord of the Sith, so powerful and so wise he could use the Force to influence the midichlorians to create life… He had such a knowledge of the dark side that he could even keep the ones he cared about from dying. The dark side of the Force is a pathway to many abilities some consider to be unnatural. He became so powerful… the only thing he was afraid of was losing his power, which eventually, of course, he did. Unfortunately, he taught his apprentice everything he knew, then his apprentice killed him in his sleep. Ironic. He could save others from death, but not himself."

How he managed to get through that with a straight face, even he didn't know.

Fina had a hand covering her mouth. She couldn't believe such a horrible thing had happened to someone. "How awful. To think someone who worked so hard to protect those he cared about was betrayed by someone he trusted."

...

...Did she think he was serious?

"You realize everything I just said is from a movie, right? It's just a reference."

A blush began to form on her face. Was it really from a movie?! "Is that so? My how embarrassing of me, it sounded so real that I thought it was something that had actually happened. I'm not very knowledgeable when it comes to movies, I usually watch old ones with my parents when they're playing on tv." she begins to fiddle with her hair to try and ignore her blunder. "Um, what movie were you referencing to mister Takuma?"

"A terrible one that should never have existed." He spoke, face and voice completely deadpan.

Fina felt chills go down her back when he said that, he looked so ominous. "Was it that bad? It sounded like an interesting concept."

His head turning slowly, his deadpan gaze locked onto Josefina's own.

"We don't talk about the prequels."

You could almost imagine the sound of concrete dragging along the ground as he turned his head back slowly, before giving her a grin.

Fina's face goes pale and she covers her ears. "No please stop mister Takuma! It's too scary!" She felt like she was about to cry. She knows they were just movies but he made the whole thing sound like a bad omen.

"Oh, shit, I didn't mean to scare you!" Takuma suddenly spoke, his voice full of worry, a concerned look on his face.

"I-it was just a joke, people just really don't like the movie because it was anticipated for a long time and it sucked. There's no reason to be scared, please don't cry, i'm shit at comforting people."

Well, that joke could have gone better.

If he hadn't realized his kind of comedy wasn't the best earlier, he certainly had now.

"A joke?" She lowered her hands and sighed a breath of relief. "I was afraid the movie was cursed or something of that sort. I'm sorry if I ruined your fun mister Takuma, I'm just no good with jokes."

Letting out a quiet chuckle Takuma looked up at the wedding planner. "It's fine, my kind of humour isn't for everyone. Today's just been a great reminder of that."

Getting to his feet, Takuma quickly stretched his neck back, releasing a small crack and hoping against hope he hadn't spooked Fina with the action.

"Thanks for the pep talk, you're one of the only two people to try cheer me up, y'know? It'd be nice to talk to you again later." His tone was much more relaxed than it had been at the start of the conversation, and he seemed to stand straighter upright than before. "If I ever need someone to plan me a wedding, though I highly doubt it'll be any time soon, I'll be sure to come to you, alright?"

Fina gives him a warm smile and nods. "I'll do my best to make it one of the happiest days of you life when you're ready for it mister Takuma! And I'll practice figuring out jokes too! It'll be more fun for both of us once I figure those out!"

Takuma couldn't help but chuckle as he walked away from the pink haired girl, raising a hand as if waving goodbye.

"Don't force yourself for my sake, Pinky. Just do what you want and I'm sure we'll get along just fine."

[royal-despair-threads]

Leon & Takuma [Prologue]

Leon leans back in his seat, removed from the others in the corner of the room. He recalls this is the same chair in which he woke up. He glances up at the fish tank to his left to watch the various fish dart around, but soon turns his attention back to his hand. Leon rolls a piece of grape candy in between his fingers. He's been doing this for a solid five minutes now, and still feels no desire to eat it. With a sigh, he shoves it back into his pocket before rummaging through his bag in hopes of something even slightly entertaining.

A sigh emerged from Takuma's lips as he slowly wandered around the room, eyes downcast and arms crossed loosely. A form coming into his line of sight, Takuma gently nudged the white haired boy on the floor, seeing if he could wake him from his slumber.

Spoiler: It didn't work.

A smile made its way onto the guitarist's face, though it failed to reach his eyes. At least one person here wouldn't judge him for his stupid comment. Releasing another sigh, Takuma quickly dropped down into the middle chair by the fish tank, ignoring those around him as he clasped his hands together and began to think of... well, anything. Anything to distract himself from the situation, the embarrassment, everything. Surprisingly enough, he found Beethoven's 'Moonlight Sonata' coming to mind, the melody effortlessly flooding its way though Takuma's brain.

Absentmindedly, he began to hum the song.

Leon glances up from the piece of candy. His mind is flowing with questions of just how he got it, as he never carries grape candy on him. The theories he has are... troubling, to say the least. The monotony of this room is driving him crazy. Looking for a way to distract himself, Leon is soon presented with an opportunity. He hears someone beginning to hum along to "Moonlight Sonata." He may not be too familiar with the names of classical pieces, but that song is quite memorable.

Glancing up and away from the piece of candy, his eyes land on Takuma. Oh. Maybe he wouldn't act on this distraction after all. But then again... Leon could use this as a chance to scold him again? No, that would be redundant at this point. He knows what he said was wrong, even if it was meant to be a joke. The other people in the room turning on him in an instant proved that. So he resolves to just listen to him hum. It's quite pleasant.

Fingers gently tapping against his knuckles in time with the music, Takuma found himself relaxing. Though he wasn't much of a fan of classical music, he couldn't deny its ability to ease nerves and provoke thought. A billion ideas were flooding through the guitarist's head as the song began to reach its climax, most of them incoherent or downright stupid, though a few hidden gems laid within.

Pieces of the song meshed together in his mind, lyrics and chords attributing themselves to it. His humming began to change, more resembling the song he had suddenly dreamt up, the tune similar to that of Moonlight Sonata, yet different enough that it could be considered unique.

And then he stopped.

The song drifted from his mind.

A heavy breath emerged from his lips as he opened his eyes to the world once more, turning his head to the left as he began to gaze around the roo-

Oh, Leon's here. Right next to him. And he'd probably been there the whole time.

...Maybe if Takuma remained silent, he wouldn't notice he was here.

Unfortunately for Takuma, Leon isn't a T-Rex. He can see you whether or not you're moving. Even if that's only due to the Jurassic series and the mun is struggling to find something that uses movement based vision. In any case, Takuma trying to stay still and quiet isn't going to work on him.

Leon breathes out a sigh. He can understand why he'd be nervous, but it's probably best he doesn't let this go on for too long. He's already being shunned by the group anyway. Leon tosses a piece of grape candy at Takuma. "Here. Take it." It's not like he's going to eat it anyway. He supposes it shouldn't go to waste.

[royal-despair-threads]

Ethan & Seojun [Prologue]

Ethan scanned the room once more, arms and legs crossed. Trapped, with truly no way out of this room until their captors arrive. If they ever arrive. Well, they had to be let out sometime. They can't exactly go without food or water for a few days, right? God, this was such a headache.

His eye then caught a platinum blond guy not too far from him. Damn, he was cute. Wait, this was no time to be ogling over handsome men, he needed to have a clear mind. Shaking his head, he called out to Seojun, "Hey, you."

"Hm?"  Luckily for the brunette, this platinum blond was within a foot or two from his earshot, and he ended up turning around to lock eyes with him.  His eyes were bright, but rather sharp.  He noticed that he really didn't talk to....anyone really, so hearing this guy call him out specifically came as a surprise.

He looked both ways, before pointing to himself quizzingly.  "...Me?"

"Yes. You." Ethan gave him a tiny, amicable smile. "Come over here for a sec?"

A beat or two goes by, before the man slowly makes his way over towards the normally silent stranger before him.  He flashes a small smile, shrugging his shoulders.  “How can I help you, sir?”  He lightly jests, placing a hand on his hip.

Ethan rolled his eyes, his smile still present. "I'd like to...interrogate you, if you don't mind."

“Alright; let’s hear it.”  He crosses his arms, arching his eyebrow, all the while keeping the smile on his face.  “What would you like to know?”

"Your phone number," Ethan answered, chuckling. It was hard to tell whether he was joking or not.

Immediately, the man started to laugh, utterly amused by this outcome.  Well, this was unexpected, that was for sure.  Was he really that attractive?  Nevertheless, Seojun took a step closer, meeting eye-level with this brunette.  Thank god they were the exact same height.

“If you got something to write on and with, we’ll see about that.  That might have to wait, considering I don’t have my phone on me.  But while your attempt at flirting with me was cute, why have my phone number when you could talk to me face to face like this?  Much more satisfying, I’d assume.”

Revenge?  Yes.

It was Ethan's turn to laugh now. He liked this guy already -- perfectly willing to flirt back. Honestly, he was expecting to be turned down because Seojun didn't roll that way. Well, he still didn't know whether Seojun rolled that way or not, but the fact that he was playing along made him all warm and fuzzy. It only intensified when Seojun's face got closer to his.

"Well, well, looks like somebody knows a thing or two about flirting. Am I that attractive if you like gazing at my face? I mean, not that I mind. In fact, gives me a perfect excuse to stare right back at yours."

Of course Seojun rolled that way.  He rolled both ways; who said that a choice had to be made in choosing a gender to like?  It's just how he rolled.  "Perhaps, but from what I can tell, it seems you wouldn't be able to look away anyway."

With another laugh, he held out his hand.  "Seojun.  Seojun Tsoi.  And you must be...?"

Ethan laughed a little more, as he grinned widely at Seojun. He shook the held out hand. "Ethan Townsworth." He quirked a brow once he heard the other's name. "Seojun Tsoi. Not much is known about you and your personal life. But from what I found, you're actually a pretty decent guy. You have a younger sister and you live with your uncle in Massachusetts, but you were born in South Korea. I also found that you're a bit of a ployglot."

"Wow.  Looks like someone did their homework."  Another laugh came from this man with bleached locks.  Color him surprised, he was impressed.  "All of those things are true.  You must know about my title then.  How did you find out about my information that quickly?"

"A little research can go a long way." Ethan smirked. "I can also look into your...ah, bedroom preferences if you want me to."

"Bedroom preferences, huh?"  He tilted his head up slightly, reforming the smirk from before as well.  "I don't need research to find yours, Ethan.  I just have to figure it out.  That's how it works, right?"

"Oh yeah, you got it." Ethan took a step closer to Seojun. Then he traced a finger on the other's chest and lowered his voice. "You can figure me out all you'd like, handsome. Take your sweet time. I wonder how much it takes before you come undone..."

Did his cheeks flush for a moment there?  Who knows.  This guy isn't as experienced as he makes himself out to be, but Seojun couldn't let his new friend see this.  Besides, they just met - was now the time to be asking for something as promiscuous as...? Seojun let out a silent chuckle, turning himself around to whisper huskily into the brunette's ear.  "I'll be keeping my eye out, then..."

Leaning back, he pockets his hands with a wide grin.  "But hey, I'd like for you to tell me a bit about yourself, too.  It's not like I haven't done my homework either, Mr. Townsworth.  Aren't you the Criminal Psychologist that's all over the New York Times as of this moment?"

"Heh. I wouldn't say I'm all over the news, but pretty close." Ethan laughed softly. This Seojun guy was pretty fun to flirt with; maybe he should do it more in the future. He was damn proud of making him blush, though -- he loved it when he had that effect on others. "C'mon, handsome, tell me what you have on me."

"Are you sure about that?"  His lips suddenly round out into an "o" shape, before a wide smirk dawns upon his face again.  Being on the internet a lot does have its perks; he could easily find information about anyone that's within the public eye in a flash.  "Well, if you insist."

"Not much is known about you either, but you've helped in quite the amount of cases that had hit news stations nationwide - I've seen a few of your cases hit where I lived too, in terms of stations."  He slowly circles around Ethan, as if he was going to "prey" upon him.  "Quite the enigmatic teen you are.  Your latest case was with the infamous serial killer, who was roaming around the places where you lived, right?"

"Hm, yeah, you got it. And that's the way I like it too." Ethan chuckled, grinning widely. He wondered just how much Seojun knew about him based on what he found. He looked forward to talking with him more. "The Mad Butcher of New York City, or 'The Butcher' for short. His M.O. is asphyxiation by strangling, and then mutilating his victims based on the crimes The Butcher has judged them guilty for. A vigilante; an executioner."

"Ohh, scandalous."  He hitched his breath, still ever so slowly circling around the older male.  His lips turn into a grimace.  "How many victims under his belt?  Ten?  Twenty?  I'm guessing you stopped him before it got too high."

"Oh, whoever said he had been stopped? He's still going, running free."

[royal-despair-threads]

Raiden & Runa [Prologue]

Raiden was sitting on his own, gazing around the room. Well there really wasn't much he could do now. The puzzle had already been solved. He decided he would just spend a bit of time on his own in order to reflect on what was happening.

He hoped they would be released soon. He was worried about his family back home and his family at the sumo stables. He hoped whoever had put him here hadn't harmed anyone he cared about.

Ruffling her hair, Runa glanced over towards the man who appeared to be meditating. She didn’t want to bother him, but many of the others were already having idle chatter of their own. Besides, he had quite the set of manners with him when he introduced himself. If anything, he seemed the type to bring peace of mind. Confirming her decision, she made her way to him and placed her hands behind her back.

“Um, excuse me? Would you like some company?”

Raiden opened his eyes when he heard someone address him. Turning his head, he smiled warmly at the newcomer. Although he liked spending time alone, he was always happy to meet new people. "I would very much appreciate some company. Please, have a seat." He gestured to the seat beside him.

He bowed his head politely at Runa. "My name is Raiden Asashoryu. How many I address you?"

“Ah, thanks.” She smiled gratefully and took a seat beside him. “I’m glad we can properly introduce ourselves. It’s nice to meet you, Raiden.” She tucked a stray of hair behind her ear. “You can call me quite anything, but Runa is fine.”

She stretches her arms out in front of her, “I have to be honest, Raiden, a little peace of mind is needed right now. Truth or dare was fun, but even I can admit some things were a little out of hand. Still though, hope you enjoyed it?”

"It's a pleasure to meet you too, Runa-san!" He folded his hands in his lap and adjusted himself so he could face Runa better.

"I agree - it's nice to just sit down and get away from the crowd every now and again."

He smiled his big warm smile and nodded at Runa. "It was quite enjoyable! I hope I did well enough, it was the first time I'd ever played Truth or Dare before."

Runa’s mouth parted slightly, “Really? Your first time? I never would have guessed. You did really well! Sometimes people have trouble coming up with things on the spot, but you got it no sweat. When we get out of here, let’s play more games. Nobody would guess it, but back in my old school, I used to go to a good number of parties.”

She nodded, somewhat proud of her accomplishment, “Oh, I don’t think I’ve asked before, but what’s your talent? Flower arranging?” She smiled with a light hearted joke. She could see that being it.

Raiden's smile grew. "Oh, really? That makes me feel better. I was not sure if I was playing well enough."

At the mention of playing more games, he nodded in agreement. "That sounds like it would be quite enjoyable." Ah - parties? Raiden has never been to a party. At least, not a party hosted by teenagers for fun.

Raiden chuckled softly and shook his head. "No, no. I'm the Ultimate Sumo Wrestler. How about you, Runa-san?"

“Oh, wow.” She couldn’t have predicted that. It’s true, you really can’t judge a book by its cover. “I can’t imagine seeing you aggressive in any way.” She admitted.  But looking at it now, his appearance did suit his talent.

After a moment, she realized this was the second time he used an honorific, “Ah, you can use Runa-San if you’re comfortable, and I may be jumping the gun, but I feel fairly secure around you. Just Runa is fine.”

“In any case, I’m the Ultimate Writer. I feel like they gave me that title prematurely since I haven’t touched all the genres yet, but it’s my goal for the near future.”

Raiden chuckled again. He was pretty pleased that Runa didn't see him as violent. "Please do not get me wrong, I do not participate in sumo wrestling to be violent or aggressive. I participate because I love the sumo lifestyle and I respect the culture of the sport. It means a lot to me."

He nodded at her request.

"Very well then, I shall refer to you as...Runa." He seemed a little uncomfortable as he said this, but if it was what Runa wanted, he would do it!

“It sounds like you really enjoy it.” She smiled, “I’ve heard from the others too that you also really love to cook. You were planning on helping out with the buffet, right?” She looked away.

“Even with all that’s happened so far, I hope... we can still do that.”

[royal-despair-threads]

Manobu & Fina [Prologue]

Since being woken up, Manobu has really kept to himself. He stayed to the perimeter, mostly admiring the the design of this room. Beyond just the room itself, he also took notice of the others stuck inside as well. Given his facial expression, he didn't seem impressed in his co-captives.

After enough idling, the young architect decided to take a closer look at the display case. On his way there, he accidentally bumps into someone.

"Hey! Didn't you see my coming this way? Really, you should have just moved out of my way." His arms are now crossed as he looks at her with disgust.

Fina was day dreaming and not really paying attention when someone bumps into her. She rubs her arm and looks down to see a white haired boy. He looks upset and she panics a bit "Oh I'm so sorry about that! I wasn't paying attention to my surroundinds."

Snapping, “Well, you better start paying attention!” Manobu huffs and goes to move past her, purposefully making sure to bump into her again. This makes him turn on his heels and stare her down with anger in his eyes.

“Didn’t we just talk about this? God! Can’t you do anything right?” He begins tapping his foot. That quickly comes to stop and his expression softens. “You know, there is a way to make up for all this trouble you’ve caused me.”

Manobu smiles and rubs his chin. “Say, what’s your name? I do need a hand maiden.” He raises his eyebrows.

Fina freezes at his harsh gaze. Not even the worst of customers have done this to her. "I'm so sorry about that. My name is Josefina De Belasco." She feels tears prickling her eyes, she feels bad for making him so angry. "If that will help me gain your forgiveness then I suppose I can do my best with that task."

Is that... a frown? On Manobu's face? Yes, but it's extremely forced. The architect puts a hand over his chest, "You wound me and then expect me to remember a name like that?" He moves his hand off his chest and aims to flick her on the forehead. "Don't be dumb, pick an easier name that I might find time to remember, idiot."

He then turns away and sticks his hands in his pockets. He closes his eyes. "Remember my name. It'll be valuable information for you since you are now my hand maiden until you've paid for your crimes." Manobu's eyes open. "Manobu Hasekura, Superior, Your Majesty, The Perfect Gentleman--" He glances towards her hoping she gets the idea; he's better than her as far as he's concerned.

"I'm so sorry, mister Hasekura. You can call me Fina if you prefer." Wait. Manobu Hasekura? As in the Manobu Hasekura. She wasn't very knowledgeable of the whole architect world but she knew enough to get by. And one thing that even a novice like her would know is him. She's heard his name plenty of times when she goes venue hunting. His buildings are some of the most beautiful locations. "Um, sir. I'm so sorry to ask but by any chance, are you the architect Manobu Hasekura?" She felt a bit better getting to actually meet him but it's not gonna fix that fact that he's very rude and mean.

"Fina," Manobu repeats to himself quietly. He nods when he thinks he's remembered it or found a way to change into something a little more demeaning. He's about to speak, but she catches him off guard when she speaks again. Boy, what she said made him grin like he hadn't grinned before.

"Yeah. I am. My shoulders are getting a little tense. How about you give me a massage now? I did just cross off meeting the Faceless Architect off your bucket list, after all."

She was taken aback by the demand. "Oh um...Of course mister Hasekura." She walks over to him and begins to lightly rub his shoulders. She's not really sure how it's supposed to be done. She's never had to rub someone's shoulders at least not someone she just met.

"Mister Hasekura. I know you said "handmaid" but will it be stuff like this that you'll have me do?" she doesn't mind simple tasks but she isn't sure if she'll be able to keep up if he has her do something more difficult.

Manobu lets out a sigh of pleasure as she somewhat hits the right spot. He's quick to notice that she's not really experienced in this so he turns back around, letting her know that she can stop for now.

"It'll be whatever I feel like making you do," he states while placing his hands on his hips. "That's not going to be a problem, right?" The way he said that last word was kind of threatening.

She shook in fear when she heard that. She was to afraid to say no. Who knows what would happen if she didn't agree. Fina gulped down enough of the fear to give a quiet response. "No problem mister Hasekura."

[royal-despair-threads]

Leon & Manobu [Prologue]

Leon rubs his temples, staring down at the piece of butterscotch sitting on the table. Should he? It's his only piece, after all. And he doesn't know how long he'll be stuck in this room. Maybe he should save it for later, but Leon knows he needs some kind of morale boost after being the one to break up about three fights and deal with the aftermath. Whether that was making sure an unconscious Takuma wasn't putting any weight on his lower body after Petra punched his unmentionables so hard he passed out, or dispelling all the tension. There's so much teen drama. Paired with the fact that he had a brief but memorable discussion with his friend, and Leon can see that he probably needs it. Despite this, he purses his lips under his mask and slides it into his pocket. He can save it for later.

Seated on one of the velvet chairs that lines the perimeter of the room is one watchful architect. He's observant, but he doesn't really care for what other people do. Besides, it seems like everyone here is unworthy of being talked to by him.

That said, he had noticed a certain individual pocket something. What they pocketed? He didn't know, but he was going to call them out.

"You," he echoes his voice out while pointing his finger at the masked student. "Are you stealing? It's just like petty looking thief like yourself to rob such a beautiful room of it's treasure."

Manobu stops pointing in favour of crossing his arms. The right corner of his mouth tugs upward into a smirk.

Leon glances over in the direction of the voice. Registering the words, 'Are you stealing?', he silently shakes his head and pulls out the single piece of butterscotch. "This? Woke up with it in my pocket, unsurprisingly. Candy has a way of making itself to me. Besides, I don't consider myself particularly sticky-fingered." He doesn't seems particularly offended at the accusation of thievery.

He shifts slightly from where he sits to face the stranger. Of course he recognizes him. Leon knows the face of the person who slept like a corpse all too well. He was actually hoping they would impersonate him sleeping when they played Truth or Dare. "I've got a handful of grape hard candies too."

So, they aren't offended and they weren't stealing? Manobu's smirk dissipates a little, almost changing to an expression of boredom. Either way, his interest in this conversation has certainly taken a turn for the worse.

"I don't really care too much about candy. Can you offer me anything else besides candy? If not, you should probably stop wasting my time."

“And I should be entertaining you because...?” Leon typically isn’t one to be short with people, but after dealing with the things he has in the span of a few hours? It’s a wonder he hasn’t snapped yet.

“If you don’t want to talk to me, then leave me alone. I’ve had enough bullshit for today. If you have something to say to me other than insults and complaints, great.” He isn’t necessarily snapping, but Leon is fairly irritated. He hides it well under a blank expression though.

A quick glance of curiosity at the person who’s suddenly seemed to bark back was enough to see the change in their expression. It seems he’s bound for a rollercoaster ride here in this room; his interest in conversations with people rising and falling all the time.

“Are you blind? You should be honoured— blessed to even have the opportunity to even look me in the eye!” Manobu stands up and takes a couple steps closer to them. An aura of pride seemed to emanate from him.

“I think I’ll do whatever I damn well please. For a petty thief, you should recognise treasure when it’s standing right in front of you.” The architect gestures to himself. Looks like he’s taken a newfound interest in making sure this person knew just how different in status they were.

"How impressive." The albino's voice is drenched in sarcasm, Leon staring right into his eyes as if challenging him. "Truly, woe is me that I didn't recognize the pure magnificence standing before my vile self. How fitting that the owner of such brilliance is an absolute child who's haughty remarks hold no real weight."

A sickly sweet smile soon rises to his lips. He still possesses that eerie calmness. Leon wouldn't give this arrogant prick an emotional reaction to pick up on. That's how they start latching onto you after all, and he doesn't need a leech.

"If I'm a petty thief, then you must be the piece of trash in the roadway. Because not even I would want you sweetheart!~"

Manobu curls his hand into a fist and moves it in front of his mouth as he chuckles lightly. "Pathetic," he states boldly before turning around and going back to sit in the chair he had gotten up from.

"Listen closely, Albi, I know people like you all too well. You're lost, confused, and probably a little bit unsure of yourself. All that can be cleared up once you know you're place in the world. Here's a hint: it's under my foot." Manobu lifts his foot up for them to go be a footstool if they please.

"Word of advice from someone's who's successful: watch your damn mouth."

He glances at his foot before his eyes flick up to meet his face. He's attractive, the Dollmaker will give him that, but Leon isn't going to make this little exchange easy for him by bending to his every will. He plays the the long strand of hair he has absentmindedly. "Kinky. Didn't know you were into that kind of thing." Like he can talk, but that's besides the point. His admittance of that would only give this prick a new avenue of attack.

"As for my success? Well, we're all Ultimates here, can that metric even be considered valid? Besides, they're less forgiving than me darling. I doubt most of them would give such an impertinent brat the time of day~" He laughs lowly, the sickly sweetness never leaving his tone. "I for one would love to see what Petra would do to you if you said the same thing towards her."

Manobu's face was one of confusion when he heard the word kinky, but he shook his head slightly to get himself back on track with the task at hand.

He puts his foot down, it's clearly not getting anything to rest on. "You're an Ultimate?! You act like I didn't know that." Manobu snorts. "How could I not know the Ultimate Footstool when I saw them?" He tilts his head to the side with an antagonising expression plastered on his face. "Petra? That name sounds kind of familiar... oh! She's your Queen Bee, right? I should be talking to her. I try to only affiliate myself with those with an ounce of worthiness."

"Oh, she's just lovely, I'm sure you'll love her." His grin doesn't fade for a moment. Why should he be reacting to his taunts anyway, especially when he's just barely starting to get under his skin? He knows who he is. If his moment of confusion was anything to go by. Leon is beginning to entertain the idea of fucking around with him. And so... switch!

"So, what's your talent anyway?" His smile becomes much sweeter in almost a blink of an eye, and he tilts his head. He's still irritated, quite so, but he he can get along with Petra he can get along with anyone. "I'm quite curious, since you seem to take such pride in it." He rests his chin in the palm of his hand, quickly contemplating how he can screw with him even more. Oh! That should get him nice and confused. "And I'm so sorry for my earlier behavior, you wouldn't believe what's been happening while you were asleep~"

Well, it's a little disappointing that he doesn't seem to be getting the other person to squirm. He also doesn't know how to respond to talk of this female. For now he resorts to listening to what his peer has to say.

Once the other is done speaking, Manobu just looks bored (maybe further disappointed by the suddenness of them backing down and changing their tune). "Hm? Finally figured out how to talk to someone above you?" Manobu reaches up to crack his neck. "Your apology's not accepted. Just know you'll owe me big time." A wink.

"I'm an architect," he answers. "The best one out there." He stifles a yawn now that the albino mentions him sleeping. "I don't have to believe it-- because I don't care. Nothing important happens unless I'm there. If I'm asleep, nothing important happens."

Mm.. somewhere in the middle then? This man is proving to be quite the character, and Leon is trying to decode him the best he can. He watches Manobu closely, intently, trying to find anything he can use. Leon knows with his knowledge of psychological cues, he should be able to find something. All his life's experience wasn't for nothing after all.

Then, it clicks. Does he... want him to start getting uncomfortable? He's kind of a bitch so that would make sense. It would also explain how the only time he ever seemed interested in the conversation is when he was confronted. He wants someone who has feel superior to. Someone who will bite back, but can't handle insults. .... Probably. Leon can certainly act that way, but it's not that easy to feel genuine about it. His weak spots are few but especially effective. Honestly, the thing that makes him most uncomfortable right now is not knowing whether he has a handle on the situation or not... You know what? Fuck it. He'll just be his god damn self, for once. He has a ton of people who like him right now, what is one standoffish brat going to do the tip that balance?

"Oh? And what could someone as pathetic as me possibly provide for someone as arrogant as you? You seem the type to ask for something no one could possibly provide, or something really embarrassing. Probably so you can feel like you're above them, right? Or I suppose you already think you're above them." Leon shrugs lightly. "I will admit, that's a cool talent. Architecture and design in general is interesting. And think what you will of the importance of our situation, I really could care less."

[royal-despair-threads]

Fina & Liz [Prologue]

Chaos had ensued almost as soon as people had started to wake up and, naturally, Liz wanted no part of that and stuck to the sidelines. Since things had calmed down Liz decided now was the time to actually try to be social! With a new burst of determination Liz looked around and saw a girl with pink hair across the room. And so she pulled down her mask, walked across the room, smiled awkwardly and said, "H-hey, hi, um I'm Liz! The Shsl surgeon... How are you handling this weird situation?"  While waiting g for a reply she continued with her painfully awkward smile then realized she probably looked stupid and fell back into her defalt stoicness.

Fina looked down when she heard someone speak. She saw a girl and gave her a warm smile. "Oh hello! It's nice to meet miss Liz. My name is Josefina and I'm the shsl wedding planner." She finished her intoduction with a curtsy. "But my talent is nowhere near as impressive as yours miss! A surgeon sounds so amazing. You must be incredibly skillful to be one at your age!"

Liz smiles, "that's sweet of you to say! I've worked obnoxiously hard to get where I am, but don't sell yourself short! A talent like yours must be so satisfying!" Liz blushes with excitement, " just imagining a job completely dedicated to love and making sure the biggest day of someone's life is just perfect~ that sounds amazing."

Fina smiled even brighter. She loves it when she finds like minded people. "Right?! It's the best feeling in the world when you get to see two people who love each other so much that they would come together in holy matrimony. It's a wonderful time really." She rambled off due to her excitement.

"It really is beautiful!" Liz sighs  "Surgery can be so sad sometimes... And Gorey... but it's happy sometimes too! Sometimes... ahh but I wonder if I'll ever find love!" Liz shakes the sadness from her face, "It's one of my dreams to find the perfect man! Or woman! Or both! I want it to be like a romance novel~ though I realize that probably is a bit cheesy..."

"But being cheesy is the best thing about love. Finding someone who makes you want to do all the silly tropes you see in movies, tv, and book is wonderful. Plus it's fun to dream about it and I know you will miss Liz! You're very talented, dedicated to your work, very pretty and so much more." She was determined to make her feel like a wonderful future bride to be. "And yes your job has it's downs and not so pretty moments but you have the chance to save someone's life. You're like a hero miss!"

Liz' face got all red and a beaming smile spread across her face, "That is... So sweet Josefina, I almost wanna cry, no one has ever said something so nice to me! You really are such a nice person! Truly! To be able to stay positive and kind even in a situation like this."

Fina feels so happy being able to get to see Liz smile like that. "Well it does me no good to be angry and yell at people. It'll just upset someone in turn and the process will continue until we all hate each other. Right now I feel like we just need to be calm and try to think of good things!" She eases the smile a bit and asks, "But how are you doing miss Liz? You seem to also be handling this pretty well."

Liz smiles at that thought, "yeah, I like that attitude! Although I feel like there are some people that might be... difficult to be nice to." Liz thinks for a bit, "well, I'm doing okay, I guess I just feel like there's no point in acting all crazy and afraid? Worse things have happened to people before, I just hope that this isn't... the beginning of something a lot worse than we're all imagining..."

Fina nods with her face looking a tad bit more glum. "That's true. Right now we just need to stick together and hope for the best and may God forbid anything bad happening to us."

[royal-despair-threads]

Runa & Ethan [Prologue]

Runa hadn’t gotten the chance to talk to too many people. Some were very flashy and a little hard to approach. Amidst the chatter, Runa had noticed a more reserved character over by the wall. Given she had no knowledge how long she and the rest of the group would be in this room, she opted to greet him.

“Um, hello. I don’t believe I have your name.”

Ethan turned his head to Runa, a frown playing his lips. "Most people don't," he retorted, shaking his head. "Ethan Townsworth. Criminal Psychologist."

He was a little abrasive, but she received a name, didn’t she? She grinned, “Nice to meet you, Ethan. I’m Runa.” She thought about his words before crossing her arms, “A criminal psychologist at our age? And I thought the surgeon was had hard work...well, your talent is probably equally so.” She noted impressed. It seemed like a serious occupation. What sort of path could have led him down to this talent?

Well, if anything, the well-being of others right now did linger in the back of her mind so she’d figure she’d make light conversation for the short while. “So how are you fairing right now?”

Ethan wanted to roll his eyes. Of course being a criminal psychologist is hard work. Interviewing criminal offenders and accused victims always dragged his mood down. Not to mention going to court to give expert testimony and all that legal shit.

He sighed, softly. "Could be better, to be completely blunt." A pause. "Runa? As in Runa Knightly? You were the winner of a countrywide short story competition that knocked all the other thousands of entrees out of the park. Then you were granted opportunities to publish future works that also received rave reviews. Your grammar and sentence structure are impeccable, and has realistic plot and dialogue that really drew in its readers, and even the most stubborn haters of literature can't help but agree. If I remember correctly, you're working on an entirely new project said to be a trilogy series with ten different endings, one of which would be the true ending. And I have to admit it's pretty damn impressive."

That was really nice to hear! Standoffish or not, he paid credit where credit was due. “Ah, thank you, Ethan! I’ll take that to heart.” She looked around the room, “Though now I suppose my work will have to be on hold.” She frowned before shaking her head and grinning at him.

“I like to keep busy, but the break is nice. You take care too. Last thing we need is more... injuries...”

"Hm, yeah. I mean, I wouldn't mind throwing around a few punches, but I can restrain myself." Ethan shrugged. "Sure would like to let out some steam, though."

“I’m sure everyone could use a little time to themselves...” she glanced to the side, “You’re pretty well versed in understanding one’s behavior so you can probably sense the tension in the room.” She held her hands behind her back.

“But let’s hold back the punches for now. I doubt we’ll be in this room indefinitely.” She looked back at him, “Anybody spark your interest though? There are some pretty intriguing characters here.”

"Yeah, I'll admit that all of you are quite intriguing in your own ways. Especially the few people who have caught my eye. But man, you guys sure love to cause discord."

“That’s what I’m worried about. Someone’s gonna leave with a black eye, I can feel it.” She wearily looked over to the architect with sunglasses on his head, then to Petra.

She looked back to Ethan, “Anyway, I don’t mean to take up your time. Just thought the polite thing to do would be to introduce myself.” She lightly nodded at him. “Feel free to talk to me whenever, it was nice meeting you.” She smiled and waved as she turned on her heel.

"See ya." Ethan waved goodbye to Runa, then he went back to his train of thoughts.

[royal-despair-threads]

Runa & Liz [Prologue]

Many people in the room had already introduced themselves for the most part. Yet Runa wasn’t sure about a select few. Namely because they hadn’t spoken up much when he commotion had first started. But if things weren’t subject to change with their current predicament, she might as well introduce herself to some unfamiliar faces. After chatting with a few people, she opted to speak to a pretty girl with her hair in a ponytail.

“Uh, hello. I don’t believe we’ve met yet. What’s your name?” She asked.

Liz, a bit surprised that someone had approached her, looked up at the girl with a mildly confused look on her face. She wasn't used to people wanting to talk to her, especially since it looked like there were so many other interesting people in the group. "Hm? O-oh hello, I'm Elizabeth the shsl Surgeon, but you can just call me Liz..." Liz looks a bit embarrassed realizing that the girl who approached had probably already introduced herself to the group, " um... And who are you...?"

Runa nodded with a hand to her chin, “It’s nice to meet you, Liz! My name’s Runa.” She put a hand to the pen tucked over her right ear. “I’m the ultimate writer. Though I haven’t expanded to every genre yet. In due time.” She smiled as she thought over her words and then Liz’s previous ones.

She paused, “Wait... surgeon? At your age?” Her eyes sparkled in awe.

" Yep, a surgeon, I do everything except for brain surgery... But you, "a glint of excitement appears in Liz' eyes "you're a writer? That's... Awesome! I feel like I might've read one of your books before! I absolutely love to read! What type of genre do you  generally like to write? Do you write romance? Sci-fi? Romantic sci-fi?"

Runa laughed and sat down next to the girl, “Everything, but brain surgery, huh? You make it sound so casual, but in the end, you must have worked hard to get where you are.” She leaned back and addressed her other questions with a grin, “But it also sounds to me like someone is a fan of romantic sci-fi.”

“I haven’t touched it yet, but you can bet romance is in my dictionary.” She started counting on her fingers, “Romance, drama, fiction, a touch of horror, etcetera.” She looked at Liz, “A lot of my works are based on what goes on in my environment. So this situation,” she chuckled, “has been giving me a few ideas.”

Liz laughs a bit awkwardly, "Ah well I don't want it to sound like I'm one of those arrogant doctors that feel that they're better than everyone else... I suppose I did work very hard though. But really being a writer must be so fun! I've never been the best with words myself. Though I can definitely see how this situation might lead to some interesting ideas. I just hope it's nothing too malicious or sinister..."

“Well, then I believed you’ve rightfully earned your spot. Though I can’t be too sure how I speak reflects how I write. It’s easier to be eloquent on paper.” Runa nodded before glancing down, “And no, I suppose not. Conflict in fiction is different than reality. Everyone at Hopes Peak was unique, but I quite like this group. When we get out of here, I hope to keep my connections with them.” She looked up at her, “That includes you.” She reread the last sentence in her head before rubbing the nape of her neck, “I should tone down the sentimentality. We haven’t been here that long.” She chuckled.

Liz smiles awkwardly, "I suppose I have, and everyone here most definitely is unique in one way or another! And no, no it's fine, I'd love to meet up after this mess, I don't actually have many friends at hopes peak, or outside of hopes peak, or any friends at all..." Liz trails off a bit, "b-but anyway! Do you happen to have any of your books on you? I'd love to try reading some of them! It'd help keep my mind off of this situation."

“No friends?” Runa’s shoulders slumped, “The life of a doctor is a lonely one, huh?” Then she perked up, “Well hey! There’s a good number of people here that are actually pretty nice. Making friends doesn’t take much. And us Hopes Peak students always have the topic of talents to talk about. Never a dull moment in a conversation.” She then shifted her sitting position to where her legs were promptly tucked under her as she faced Liz. She offered a warm smile, “And if you want, I’m always open to being friends. Finding and connecting with interesting characters is my specialty!” “Oh!” It was then she remembered her last question. “Sorry, I wish I had some books to read myself. It would certainly help pass the time. You can never go wrong with books.” She sighed wistfully.

Liz smiled, "that's true, I have had a couple of nice conversations with our peers here. But... Thanks, that's sweet! It sucks you don't have your books though... When I woke up I found that I didn't have any of my supplies or anything either..." She signals to the black bag sitting at her feet, "I used to have all of my surgery tools, medicines, and even a couple of books in my bag, but now it's completely empty... I hope no one gets hurt, I'm practically useless without all of my things although I guess I could use some of the things around the room if it really came down to it," Liz looks around wistfully

“I wonder where everyone’s things are. A lot of people have noted missing things that they always kept with them.” She pursed her lips, “But really? Use objects in this room?” She chuckled, “Well, with the way some of these interactions have been going. I fear that a few will need some ice packs by the time we leave.” She remained optimistic in her minds eye. She didn’t really know when they would leave, or even if they would. But continually saying if instead of when didn’t help lift anybody’s spirits. “Though speaking of, what do you think of some of these people? I’m almost overwhelmed by the diversity of personalities here.”

And awkward smile appears on Liz' face, "well I couldn't perform surgery with just the things around the room, hopefullt surgery won't be necessary, but a doctor needs to know how to use things to momentarily fix things like broken bones or cuts," Liz thinks for a moment running through the cast that she's observed or talked to so far, "well, some of them are certainly... Rowdy, and the violence I don't feel is very necessary at all, but there are a lot of very nice people too! What do you think?"

“Still though, that’s impressive in its own right. You do what you have to, I suppose.” Runa took a moment to ponder her next thought, “In regards to everyone else, however, I quite like everyone! Sure, the insults and the fights are unnecessary, but it’s understandable when you think about it. The best we can do is take a deep breath and keep a level head.”

Runa lowered her head, “I’m still worried for everyone... some are obviously doing worse than others.” She looked up at Liz, “But it’s nice to know we have someone with medical experience in case something goes wrong.”

"yeah, things only get chaotic when people lash out at others," she nods, "I would be lying if I said I liked everyone though, but I'd also be lying if I said I'd already gotten to know everyone enough to pass judgement... But in any case I hope to be useful in that way! And hopefully the more fragile individuals manage to collect themselves and accept the support from others."

Runa put a hand to her cheek, “Oh, that’s smart...” she murmured. She rubbed the nape of her neck and laughed, “I haven’t even talked to everyone yet, but it’s safe to have a positive view on everyone before meeting them, yeah? I should learn to be more cautious like you.”

She let her body sway a little, “In case of the more fragile people. We need the weak to balance out the strong or I’m afraid everyone would be getting in a fight.” She chuckled. “Take Leon for example,” she grinned, “isn’t he nice? I think a lot of people have come to depend on him.”

"hm, I suppose, I guess I try to keep a neutral view until I actually talk to someone, or maybe I'm just too negative and cautious." Liz rests her head on her hands, "but no matter how essential the weak might be, they need to learn to be strong and depend on themselves. Being strong doesn't always mean getting into a fight all the time..." Liz smiles a bit , "Leon is nice though."

“Different types of strong then...”

“I feel like I’m getting advice from a wise elder when we speak.” She held her hand up, “That’s not a bad thing! But you’re pretty wise beyond your years. Reminds me of a character I used to write.”

She looks around the room at the varying conversations. She spots a few different people. “Izaya is really nice. Was the first to come to mind when I imagine fragile. With the support of others, I’m sure they’ll come around. In the mean time, I sort of feel like protecting them, you know?”

A blush warms Liz' cheeks as she tries to hide a bashful smile, "t-thanks, I'll take that as a compliment." She looks over at the person with the crazy blond hair across the room, " I haven't talked to Izaya yet, I'm almost afraid I'll scare them if I do, people have said I don't have the most welcoming aura..." She grins a bit, " But I have seen you and Leon talking to them, they seem to have gotten a bit more comfortable and opened up more since then. You seem like you're pretty good with people. You and Leon."

Runa lightly blushed too as she scratched her cheek, “I try to be. I was a pretty... social person back in my old school. Nothing wrong with making some friends! I like to be reliable, so if you ever need someone to talk to, even if it’s just in private, you can count on me to keep it to myself. Trust is important amongst a group.”

“But anyway, I’m sure if you just introduce yourself the same way you spoke to me, you’ll get along! They’re pretty understanding!”

Liz smiles, "it's good to hear that! That's very kind of you," she laughs a bit, "I sure am trying, though it hasbt always worked out so far." A couple moments pass then Liz looks a bit flustered, "O-oh but you can talk to me too! I'll try to give you more wise old person advice if you need it!"

“Wise old person advice.” Runa laughed as she repeated it back. She patted her back, “I’m glad to hear that, Liz. And the group is fun to chat with too. Don’t be scared to saddle on over to see what we’re doing.”

“I’ll talk to you if I want a logical view on things. Doesn’t hurt to get a second opinion from a level headed person.” “But anyway, I don’t really know too much about you. How did you become a surgeon in the first place, if you don’t mind my asking.”

"ah, well so far chaos seems to ensue whenever the group is all together... But.... I'll try my best to join next time," Liz grins.

"H-how did I become a surgeon? Oh uh," Liz looks a bit flustered as she contemplates what to say, "it was just... a lot of hard work..." A bit too enthusiastically, in an attempt to change the conversation topic, she turns to Runa, "well what about you, how did you become the ultimate writer?"

“Mm, I bet it was. Having to cram all that knowledge on anatomy and medical care.” She noticed Liz’s avoidance on the topic and decided to let it go.

“As for me, ah...” She thinks back, “I was always a fan of literature ever since I was young. You can imagine I read books constantly. I had written a few excerpts of scenes and dialogue, but my career didn’t really take off until I won a countrywide short story contest back when I was in high school.” She swayed a bit, “One thing led to another and now I find writing has become as much of a passion as reading.”

She laughed, “I hope we can leave this room soon. Not reading has made me a little antsy. Isn’t it calming?”

Glad to take the spotlight off of herself, Liz listens  intently to Runa, "That sounds amazing! It must be so relaxing and satisfying to be able to spend all day reading and writing and to know that your works will reach so many people. That's so cool~, I wish I were good at writing, but truly I am good at my talent and nothing else."

" It's made me antsy too or at least very, very bored... it is calming, there's nothing else that can replicate the feeling that you get when reading for hours on end, At least for me anyway."

“Well, you’re good at multiple surgeries, aren’t you? Save for brain, of course. I’m sure if you wanted to be, you’d be a good doctor. Heavens knows we could use more female doctors. I’ve read that statistically, they perform better and patients are more comfortable with them.”

She laughed to herself, “If anything, we’re in the same boat. I could stand to expand my hobbies, but simply reading about them won’t broaden my experience. Too bad.” She chuckled again. “But speaking of, do you have any hobbies?”

"Hm, I suppose that's true, I hadn't heard that statistic before," she smiles, "but im happy to know that I might be seen as a good doctor,"

"As for hobbies, well... I like bird watching and reading, sometimes I watch a documentary or two. Really anything that allows for more of a low energy and relaxing downtime."

Runa leaned forward, “Let’s visit a library together and pick out some books! We could go to a park or sit somewhere outside and listen to the birds there. The quiet is under appreciated.”

“Oh, and excuse me for prying further, but... why exactly do you not perform brain surgeries? I can’t help but imagine a scenario where someone would need it, but even the ultimate surgeon couldn’t perform one...” she looked down, “Sorry.”

A glint of excitement shows in her eyes, "I'd love to go to a library with you some time! The quiet most definitely is, you don't always have to go out to a movie or somewhere noisy to have fun with a friend!" "As for the brain surgery thing, well..." Liz thinks for a bit, "if I'm being honest it's simply that I don't know enough about the brain to successfully perform a surgery. Compared to other organs of the body the brain is far less understood, not to mention the fact that even the tiniest of mistakes during brain surgery could render someone unable to speak or function! It's really a miracle that medical campuses allowed me to start performing surgeries on living people, they simply would never risk that with a brain surgery. Maybe one day I'll learn it, I'll make it a goal of mine" she smiles.

Runa’s eyes softened, “That’s a good goal to have. I’ll expand my genres and you can study all you can about the brain. It’s scary when you think about it. Someone is entrusting you with their life. That’s a lot of pressure. I certainly couldn’t handle it.”

“But I’ll be sure to stick around for your first successful brain operation. We’ll throw a small get-together and celebrate!”

"well, as you expand your genres, I'll read all your books! Again, I wish you had a few here... I can't wait to see what your style of writing is." She looks off to the side, "And yeah... It is pretty scary, honestly one of my biggest fears is making that one wrong move that's impossible to fix and end up killing someone... but, I try not to think about that too much... I mean" she looks at Runa with half a smile, "I'm gonna save a lot of people too."

“You have the right way of thinking. Ah, I’d be a little bit embarrassed if you read one of my books in front of me. But I’m sure many people get that way about someone else looking at their work.”

“Anyway, I really enjoyed talking to you, Elizabeth. I’m going to go relax and maybe write some thoughts down, but you take care of yourself, alright? I’ll be around if you need me.” She gave one last smile as she rose from where she was sitting.

"ah, I look forward to talking to you again!" Liz stays in her seat with a warm smile on her face, content with the conversation she had just had and the new friend she had just made.

[royal-despair-threads]

Kai & Runa [Prologue]

Kai had two major goals since waking up, well, besides the shared goal of finding out where the hell they were and how they got there. He wanted to find out what people's after death wishes were, because, while he didn't like the feeling, he had a feeling the lives of the people around him could be in danger. If any of them died, he would have to make sure to give them a proper rest... Making friends was also nice...

The young gravedigger approached one of the girls who he hadn't seen interacted much with before, or really, at all. He had interacted with maybe 5/6 people for now.

"May I... Ask you a difficult question?" After the failure with Chiyo, he was trying to approach this a bit more carefully.

With crossed arms, Runa kept her attention to the others before a small voice caught her attention. Glancing down, she saw the meek blond boy who had woken up a little bit later than everyone else. He still had bits of dirt and dust clinging to his cheeks and she almost wished she had a handkerchief to help wipe it off. Maybe another time, she inwardly shook her head before donning a smile. “Ah, sure. What is it?” She made sure not to look too threatening. She did stand a good couple inches taller than him.

It was very nice of her not to try and be threatening, and in response, Kai asked with a little bit of a threatening question in response. He did do it with a quiet tone, but with the staring, that kinda just made it worse. " What are your after death wishes? What should I do with your body after you die? " He was making a mental list of it all, incase the worst hapepned. Everything else could wait.

“Eh?”

Alright... not expected. A little off putting, Runa noted. It began to click with her why the others had been discussing and mentioning death earlier. Well... if anything... she was flexible with conversation topics. Though his eyes did seem a bit... soulless when he spoke. She made a mental note to write a description about them later. It was sort of mesmerizing.

When she finally did speak, she remained honest, “Oh, well, I never gave it much thought to be honest.” She hummed, “Cremation, I suppose? It’s cheaper than burial. You must be fun at parties.” She chuckled. She sort of wanted to ruffle his hair. If anything, to give her hands something to focus on.

"I... Don't really get invited to those." Oh wow way to bring down the mood kiddo. Well, it was hard to bring down the mood any further after his question.

Kai went to sit down next to the girl, a gently smile appearing on his face as he made sure to remember it. If anything were to go wrong, he would still be there, ready to take care of it. If Runa wanted to ruffle his hair, now would be the best chance, heck, it seemed like a few people had already rustled his hair before she did. Or maybe that was just how his hair naturally looked, who really knows?

"But thank... You. I'll be sure to remember it." After that, there was a bit of an awkward pause, before he remembered something his father had said... many many times. 'Introductions are important'. Right, Kai looked with a bit of a nervous but excited look, as he tried to look happy to meet her... The kiddo was trying too hard. " I'm... Kai! Kai Schmutz. Ultimate Gravedigger..."

Kai seemed a bit less apprehensive now. If Runa judged correctly, he appeared a bit antisocial. Though if the first question he asked was any indicator, she should have figured as much. When he introduced himself, Gravedigger clicked pretty well with his overall character. She probably would have been spooked if it wasn’t something related to death or graveyards. Peeking up a bit at his more relaxed demeanor, she smiled a bit wider as she settled next to him.

“Nah, parties aren’t fun unless there’s a pool.” She was speaking from experience. “Anyway, it’s nice to make your acquaintance, Kai. I’ll be sure to remember you, too!” Ah, maybe now...? Maybe now she could pat his head? He was so small in comparison to her 5’10 stature. Surely just a little...? Without much thought, she reached out and lightly ruffled through his blond locks. It should have been no surprise some dust had sprinkled around where she touched and formed a small cloud.

She couldn’t hold back a laugh as she started brushing some off his shoulders, “Where did all this dust come from?”

He wasn't antisocial just... Sucked at being social. It wasn't really easy being all friendly with people if you reminded them of death and had very few social skills. But still, Kai tried his best to make more friends. He might as wel, there wasn't anything else they could do for now. He smiled at her gently, not because of the patting, but more because of what she had said.

"You don't need to.. I won't leave." Such a good boy. "But... It kinda comes with the job... And I don't like showers very... Much." The boy also had a very strange relationship with dirt, which was hard to explain to anyone. Everyone just saw it as... Dirt, but Kai... Kai knew better. Kai loved how soft it felt, how nice it was to lay on, how it brought life, how it was... brown. And if you spend a lot of your time laying on dirt, napping, it's bound to get in your clothes and hair.

Funnily enough, he didn't seem to notice the dirt falling out. Or the hair ruffling. He was so used to it by now, he kinda just tuned it out. A bit more dirt would fall out, though the leaf that was in his hair stayed put. It was likely an accessory or something, there on purpose.

"What's... Your name?"

Accepting his answer, she patted down a few flyaways before brushing off the dust on her hands. Finding solidarity in being enveloped soil, hm? She couldn’t quite understand from his point of view, but giving it some thought, it’s not like she’s rolled around in dirt recently. Maybe it was relaxing? Who was she to say? People have taken mud baths before. Leaning back, she stifled another chuckle, “Hey, I want to remember people; just like you.” Her eyes traveled to the leaf on his head before looking away and smiling. When she turned her head back, her smile was softer.

“Ah, sorry, that’s right. I never did introduce myself. My name’s Runa Knightly.” She retrieved the fountain pen from behind her ear and twirled it between her fingers. It always was a comfort tool. “I’m the Ultimate writer. Or writer in the making. Haven’t touched all the genres yet.”

At the sight of the pen, Kai pulled out a small little pencil and a very tiny black notebook. He flipped through the pages, and while it wasn't intentional, he revealed a few hundred names with short death wishes descriptions. Most of the names seemed to be German, maybe that's where he was from? His name wasn't the most Japanese, his lastname atleast. And he did have a bit of a accent, nor was his Japanese that good. The boy didn't comment on the wanting to remember people like him, instead his eyes just wandered around the room a little, as he tried to focus on something. Just staring at her was rude, right?

"That's... A very pretty name... You seem like a pretty person too." If he wasn't socially stupid and like a little baby compared to her, one could see that as flirting. He began to write down her deathwish, revealing the names of a few others in the room, clearly keeping track of what they wanted. It was... a little creepy, but also heartwarming, and worrying.

" I should... Go talk to the others... It was nice meeting you. "

His manner of speech was soft, but cute. She saw he had a notebook too. She patted the one tucked under her vest to reassure hers was still there. It was and she relaxed her shoulders. Not wanting to take up any more of his time she nodded with a small cheery smile that reached her eyes, “Alright. I should do the same. It was nice meeting you too.“ She gave his head one last pat, “Let’s talk again, okay?” He was cute and pretty relaxing to be around. She would look forward to their next conversation.

Kai seemed to actually smile because of that last pat. He nodded to the woman, before getting up from the chair and heading off to talk to some other people. This conversation had gone a lot smoother than the last, mostly because Runa hadn't asked that strange question... It still lingered in the back of his mind.

[royal-despair-threads]

Izaya & Fina [Prologue]

Fina spotted the boy who was being comforted earlier, Izaya, if her memory serves her right. She wanted to help too but maybe to many people around him would make him feel claustrophobic. But maybe she could ask him if he's doing better. She takes her time walking over as to not freak him out. "Excuse me, mister Izaya? Sorry for just coming up to you but I was just wondering if you were feeling any better."

"Hm?" Izaya had been staring at the fish for so long, they'd almost forgotten others were around. They did flush a little in embarrassment, "Oh, um, s-sorry, I didn't see you..." They quietly wheezed, "....I-it's n-not m-mister.....I'm, I'm really n-not a boy, a-at all." They felt so bad for having to bring it up right off the bat, "I-I'm age-agender." Izaya tried to focus on something less awkward, "I, um, I really l-like your hair! It's r- It's really nice...!"

Fina's eyes widen in shock. "Oh I'm so sorry I didn't realize!" She mentally hits her head, she has to learn to be more mindful of things like this. She notices their other question and hopes to forget about her blunder. "And thank you." She raises a hand up to mess with one of her pigtails. "I like it too but it's always a hassle to get it to be the right shade."

"Ah, I un-I understand." Izaya nodded, their fluffy hair moving in turn, "It takes um, there's a lot of work....that goes into this..." They gestured to their super seiyan hair. Izaya extended a shaking hand, "I'm- um. I'm Izaya Fanrong. I um, I know you have m-my name but um, w-what's yours?"

Fina giggles as they talked about their hair. She grabs their hand lightly and says with a smile, "My name is Josefina De Belasco, but please, call me Fina."

The hand grab was definitely more light than Izaya had anticipated. But it was nice. Very soft too. "Fina..." Izaya said the name as if getting used to it, "That's a n-nice nickname. Jo...Josefina is um, the name itself is lovely too." They're trying so hard to be polite and social.

She smiles brightly. "Why thank you! I like your name too,"Izaya". It rolls off the tongue rather nicely! This may seem a bit odd to ask, but I'm quite curious. What's the meaning of your name?"

Izaya blushed so hard. Oh god. How can they tell her it's just a name they chose from a manga that just happened to stick with them?!! They coughed nervously, "Oh um!! W-Well, I uh, it's, it's the Japanese equ-equivalent of 'Isaiah' as far, um as far as I know?" Well, that was certainly true but....Izaya hon, you gotta pick better husbandos.

"Oh really? That's rather interesting! I didn't know there was an equivalent for that. I guess it's true when they say you learn something new everyday."

"Y-Yeah, totally!" They offered a weak, but genuine attempt at a smile.

Fina tilts her head as she asks them another question. "Izaya, from what I was able to understand is that we're all students of Hope's Peak Academy. Do you mind if I ask what your talent may be?"

"Oh, um, I'm the Ul- the Ultimate F-Fireworks Maker..." They explained. That definitely was an odd connection Fina brought up; if everyone was a super high school level student, then this may just be a kidnapping..... oh god.

"My how amazing! I'm not sure what goes into making fireworks but I do love watching them. They're like giant flowers in the sky."

"O-oh, there's a lot of steps. People seem to think, ah, that it's like, um. That you just stuff gunpowder ina  firework shell, b-but it's s-so much cooler than that!" They seemed pretty pumped about this. Wow. "I-if you mix the chemicals r-right, you can even make such cool sha- cool shapes!!"

Fina smiles at their enthusiasm. "Definitely! To be able to create such intricate designs can only mean a lot of work was put into it. You must be very smart to be able to come up with the right combinations of chemicals and make something so pretty!"

That compliment had Izaya blushing! Oh gosh! She's so sweet! "A-Ah, um, well!! I-it's basic che-chemistry really, I m-mean-!" They babbled on and on.

Fina smiled and listened on, "Basic for you perhaps, but I feel like I'll need to try even harder in my science class if I want to be able to even try to figure out how you create such master pieces."

"Oh, um, I c-could try and explain, b-but um, it's really just b-balancing chemicals and ignition sources...." They looked ready to melt into a puddle from flusterment.

She finally took notice of their reddened face and got a bit worried, "Izaya are you ok? Do you have a fever? You seem to be getting very red, perhaps you should sit down."

"N-n-no, I-I'm! I'm okay, I'm not used to s-such nice praise...w-well, n-not to my face..." they admitted, shyly.

Fina was shocked by this. "Well what a shame, it feels better to hear words from someone in person. At least in my opinion, I get letters of thanks from time to time but seeing the happy face of someone who likes my work is much more fulfilling."

"It really does f-feel nice..." Izaya admitted, fidgetting with their sweatbands, "What is it you do, F-Fina?"

"Did I not say it? My that's very rude of me, so sorry about that. I was given the title of the ultimate wedding planner."

"Ah, m-maybe? I-I'm sorry, I'm awful w- with remembering people's names and s-stuff-!" Izaya apologised. Her talent was rather interesting though. It definitely fit Fina the more Izaya thought about it, "That's such- That's a lovely talent! You d-do look the part too, i-in terms of h-how I'd imagine a wed- a wedding planner would look....." Nice wording, Izaya..

[royal-despair-threads]

Chiyo & Fina [Prologue]

Chiyo is sitting at a chair next to the table with the two potted plants with the map on top. She seems fascinated with the plant. The leaves are stiff and the stem is kind of wooden. She runs her finger along the plant before flinching suddenly. "O, ow.." It looks like she got a splinter.

Fina was studying the map within the room hoping to see if she can figure out if it was following some course, sadly she didn't know much about this so she couldn't really get any info on it. She was about to give up and walk away when she heard someone say 'ow'. She turned her head to the source of the voice and saw the girl sitting there was staring at her finger.

"Are you ok miss? Did you hurt yourself?"

“Ah! It’s alright, I think..” Chiyo was startled at the girl’s attention. “I think I got a splinter, or s, something.” It hurts, and she wonders how much longer it’ll hurt.

"Are you sure miss? It's usually the small things that hurt the most. Maybe someone has a pair of tweezers we can use to take it out." Fina looks around the room to see if anyone looks like they might have something to help out.

“Oh...” Chiyo’s not sure if she’d want to bother anyone with something like that, and she doubts that anyone would still have tools on them. But still, Chiyo doesn’t know what else to say.. “Al, alright..”

This girl seems really nice. Despite her height, Chiyo doesn’t feel especially intimidated by her.

Fina looked around and asked the others but it seems no one had anything that could help. She returned with a saddened look, "I'm so sorry miss. I couldn't find anything that could help."

"Ah, it's p, probably alright, thank you." It still hurts slightly, but it will probably go away over time. Chiyo gives a polite smile. This woman seems so nice, Chiyo feels herself relax somewhat."I don't think I got your name, Miss. I'm Chiyo Oshiro, it's nice to meet you."

"Oh yes how rude of me for not introducing myself earlier, my name Josefina De Belasco but most people just call me Fina. It's nice to meet you too miss Chiyo!" She smiles warmly at her.

"Ah, thank you," Chiyo appreciates the formality, but she's not entirely sure whether or not to mirror it. "Um, Miss Fina, you're a student at Hope's Peak as well, right? Is it okay to ask what title they've given you?"

She's so sweet and considerate, Fina can't help but give her the same respect. "Of course it's okay! I'm the ultimate wedding planner. What about you miss Chiyo? If you don't mind me asking for your talent."

"Wow, a wedding planner! That must be so interesting!" Chiyo's hands go up to her chest and her lips pull into a smile. "To have a life surrounded by love, it must be so th, thrilling!"

"My talent isn't as interesting, but I was given the title of Ultimate Chess Player."

Fina chuckles at her excitement. "Oh yes, it's a lot of fun and I love being able to help couples with their dream wedding. And miss Chiyo your talent sounds just as amazing. The amount of skill and strategy you must have to be able to claim that title is outstanding!"

“Aha,” she blushes and looks to the side. “Y, you really flatter me.. I don’t think there’s anything I can do that you couldn’t with enough time..” Logic and planning is present in everyone, so it stands to believe that anyone could be as outstanding as her- or rather she is simply not outstanding. “Th, thank you though.....” she smiles. 

"Oh if only that were true. I've played chess a few times but before I can even think of one move the person I'm playing against has already one the game. I just don't think I was made for such a thing." Fina messes with her hair a bit, "Um do you mind if I take the seat next to you miss Chiyo?"

"Sure, I don't mind.." Chiyo shifts herself to let Fina seat herself next to her more comfortably. She watches Fina mess with her hair, seeing her fingers kind of slip through her pink strands. She looks quite cute. "Um.. I... I like your hair.."

Fina sits down next to Chiyo and lights up when she hears her compliment. "Why thank you! I'm rather proud of it. I was actually going to say the same thing about your hair. It's so long and beautiful." Fina wasn't kidding. She's wanted to grow her hair out more but it would be difficult to keep dying it and she doesn't have time for doing it. "What products do you use for your hair miss Chiyo?"

"Oh, oh thank you." Chiyo shyly smiles, subconsciously moving to play with her braids. "I don't actually p, pay too much attention to my hair. I just follow what my parents tell me to do, but um, the brand I use a lot is Ten Voss." Chiyo doesn't know it for herself, but Ten Voss is the world's most high quality and expensive brand of shampoo and conditioner.

"I a, actually really like your hair though," Chiyo continues, looking up at her, " p, pink is my favorite color.."

Ten voss? She's never heard of it before but she'll look into it when they get out of here. But she lights up at hearing Chiyo's compliment. "Thank you! And I'm glad I found a sisters in arms. I get teased by my siblings for liking pink so much but I really can't help it."

"Ah, I'm glad.." She's never quite heard of anyone being picked on for liking a color, especially when it's a girl and it's pink.. Although, something else has caught her attention. "S, so you have siblings? What, um, if you don't mind me asking, what are they like?"

Fina can't help but chuckle when asked this. She can go on and on about her family but best to keep it as short as possible.  "Oh boy, where do I even begin? Well I have two older brothers. My eldest brother Octavio is very kind and hardworking he likes to joke around a lot though. Then it's Jose Luis, he's more of the quiet type and girls seem to like him for being so stoic but he's actually just really shy and isn't very good at talking to others. Then my little sisters Xotchitl and Isabella, they're twins and very much the trouble makers of the family. They like to go on "adventures" around the farm and always come back home covered in lord knows what. And last but certainly not least is Ignacio, he's only 8 but he's the cutest little boy I've ever met. He's always drawing something new and we indulge him by framing his drawings and putting them around the house." Fina let's out a sigh. She has no clue how long she's been stuck in there and only hopes that her family is safe back at home.

Chiyo smiles listening to Fina talking about her family. She seems so happy, or at least more relaxed, talking about them. "That sounds really nice," she finally says. "That's really interesting b, because I've never had siblings before.." She hasn't, but watching and reading as many movies and books as she has, she can't help but get a somewhat vicarious feeling from them.

Fina smiles and nods, "They're troublesome at times but I love them all the same." She tilts her head in curiosity. "I hope you don't mind but what's it like being an only child?"

Her eyes move to the side. "It's quiet.." She thinks about the number of days she happened to spend purely walking around an empty house. "It's really quiet, b, but I don't mind it much." She puts on a sad smile. "I don't mind spending the time by myself.. It's nice doing things for myself.." All the time.

She feels that bad feeling in her stomach again, she screwed up again. She'll try to make it a positive again. "To have the time to focus on yourself sounds like a dream come true! To do your hobbies and just relax sounds wonderful!"

Chiyo nods and smiles politely. "Yes, it really is nice.." She thinks for a moment, knowing and realizing that the time she spends on books and movies might be a bit much. Shaking her head, she brings the conversation back to Fina. "Wh, what kind of hobbies do you have, Miss Fina?"

"Well I don't do much really. When I'm working i like to sing or dance to music. Cooking and uhh... Oh! I'm not sure if you would count this as a hobby but I love to go shopping when I can!"

She smiles, getting a sort of vicarious happiness. "That sounds nice," she says. "M, maybe sometime you should sing for us..."

Fina goes red at the thought of her singing in front of everybody. "Oh no no no. I'm no good at it. I only really do it for fun! My voice isn't really made for that, you know?" She fiddles with her dress to try and calm herself down.

"Would you be un, uncomfortable with it?" Chiyo thought for a moment. "That's fine I suppose, if you don't want to.." It would be rather intimidating to do something like that while there's another Super High School Level (Jazz) Singer amongst us. Chiyo looks to the side and contemplates something.. She's always been really shy, that's no secret. And it is something she'd like to overcome. A, and she's not comfortable with singing or anything like that at all, but if it's along with someone who also isn't confident, th, then maybe it could be a good chance for her too...

"Um..... i, if you... if you do it.. then I w, will t, t, too..." She mumbles quietly.