#Thank you so so so so much for liking my starter call!!!

[ofhope]

Oh was the lightly-polluted air of Penacony enlightening. Winter-stiff muscles grew warm beneath lamplight, the smell of fried foods coalesced his senses, and last but not least: more precious faces to lovingly swindle out of hard-earned cash, trade secrets. It wasn't malice that inspired Sampo, no, not quite curiosity either; but for every step, drive. Never life-shattering, at least not directly so, and few times did Sampo charge any-which-place bearing a blade of any sort... what good were knives, spears, whenever you had secrets?

Once rumblings of mishandled paperwork met his eager ears, Sampo would be a fool not to indulge — bonus benefits? A pretty face, but Sampo wasn't one to complain... simply: many such people focus best on their work when aided by visual, or auditory appeal.

Sampo was neither, but maybe, just maybe, this could be his good deed of the week.

“Say, I hear you're hurting for paperwork! What say you - how's about I lend you a contact of mine? I can't guarantee her prices, economy ever fluctuating, the price for kidneys always in that uncomfortable, rocky middle of not worth enough to stomach the itchy stitches, but enough to pay for a month's worth of rent. I'm kidding, buuut ~ she does require some cash up-front for her services. 'Least you, or I, can do, given the... questionable legality of the situation.”

Evering a new world did have its caveats. So many forms to fill out, so many things to sign up for, so much life insurance to invest... so, if Sampo could lend a helping hand... why not?

@crimsontwins // starter!

[wisheswagered]

Frederick hasn't been at this manor for nearly as long as the others. Though it feels like it's been an eternity to him, it means that he's still getting to know the other survivors who've found themselves trapped in this place.

And Emma Woods... is one of those people. It's such a bizarre feeling, seeing her now. While he'd never known her in life, he had heard of her - as a girl who went missing in mysterious circumstances several years ago, her life sensationalized and her disappearance treated as an unsolvable mystery by those who knew of her.

Never would he have dreamed he'd ever end up joining her among the ranks of the missing. ...He wonders if they're looking for him, too. They must be - while not for the reasons he wants, Frederick Kreiburg is a well-known name among the higher classes, and yet... that fact brings him no comfort at all.

Regardless. It's cruel of him, but the one thing that strikes him as he looks at her now is what he knows of her past. Knowing she's been a patient at an asylum for so much of her life... to be quite honest, it chills him to the bone. The reason for that discomfort is difficult to identify - or maybe, deep down, it's something that he simply doesn't want to acknowledge.

Today, though... there's only one question on his mind. Though he doesn't know if it's curiosity or paranoia that drives him to ask.

"Tell me. Why did you approach me, of all people, for this?"

@mlssamericana ( starter for emma! )

[folkorae]

@patetpluvia liked for a starter !

The girl was drinking some soda while taking a small break in her own company ; Shiemi did not hear when the other approached. And almost made the poor girl jump back. " O-OH ! I'm sorry I didn't hear you ! " Shiemi says with an apologetic tone.

[ichorsflood]

Ugh. This sucks.

When she'd first heard about the trip, Neptune had thought maybe it wouldn't be so bad. A visit to a city full of museums... well, it's not really her thing, but she can think of places that'd be a lot worse, so. Take what you can get, right?

But through some stroke of bad luck, both Venus and Jupiter ended up sick. So now here she is, stuck on her own with a bunch of shitty teachers, boring classmates, and Jesus somehow shoehorned into every conversation. Great.

At the very least, having a moment to herself like this is a blessing. ...She hopes Venus and Jupiter are doing okay. It's their own fault for working so hard lately, but. Still.

Neptune had decided to sit down for a drink, but the cafe she's found herself in is surprisingly busy. Suppressing the urge to sigh, and holding back a cough tickling her throat, she eventually chooses a random table with only one other occupant in the back.

"Hey. Mind if I sit here?"

@dnangelic

[peacebringing]

Frankly: Vash hadn't gone through all that life has to grant. Thus, whenever a bar has a long menu, chockful of words he hadn't seen, sentences he couldn't pronounce, his tongue felt knotted. Most taverns had two options of beverage, tinted tap and a potent beer that burned his throat, and one offering of food... sandwiches. Sandwiches were a first choice most times, Vash able to stack his ceiling-high with a pocketful of coins in spite. But... none of these names had -sub or -wich in the title.

A sluggish hand hovered just above a shoulder, one pace ahead of him -- not quite touching, not quite not, but enough to allude to his presence... cough cough, in case the hand wasn't enough.

“Ex-- excuse me,” a smile that didn't go to his ears, a smile haphazardly thrown on, tilted in all the wrong ways but innocently so, mistakenly so. “Can you... help me order? I'm sorry, I've just -- never been to a city this large before.” There were reasons for thus, but Vash needn't indulge them. “I can make out the names, but I ... don't know what they are. Or, well... I can't make out the names, and that's why I'm - sorry.”

Head ducked, Vash prepared himself to blindly ask for this, that.

“I... can probably figure it out, myself. Just thought I'd ask.”

@filiasiderum.

[cffidelityy]

@lunarrepel || liked for a starter

It had not gone unnoticed that Shadowheart had grown more distant with those in camp, and well Sigyn couldn't blame her. Sigyn knew she was going through so much, but wasn't quite sure how to help. She had hoped with time that the half-elf would come back around, but something about her still worried Sigyn, so the blonde moved to take a seat beside her at the other woman's tent. "Hey. . ." She says quietly, searching her brain for the right words. "I just want you to know. . . If you wanna talk, I'll listen."

[revengesworn]

Senju doesn't know much about Ryusei Sato, but the one thing she does know - is that he's close to one Baji Keisuke. That alone is enough to catch her interest. While Senju herself suspects she's never someone Baji would call a childhood friend in the same way as he would Haruchiyo and Mikey, she still knew him in his childhood, and he was someone she always looked up to; always trying to reach...

She still thinks about him sometimes. And because of that, she's interested in the people that Baji calls his friends, too.

Obviously, that's not enough reason to just approach Ryusei out of the blue, but... she is curious about the rumors she's heard - of his connections to the gang Yotsuya Kaiden specifically. Apparently, he left that gang in order to join Toman in the past... and for some reason that even she can't quite identify - part of her wants to know why.

But running into him here really was a coincidence. And it's impulse that gets her to talk to him, approaching him boldly and asking with a glint in her eyes-

"Hey. You're Baji's friend, aren't you?"

@protectivemuses ( starter for ryusei! )

[dialsdrnk]

@clearwinged liked for a starter from scotty !

" hey. " there's something about an empty parking lot to really make your voice boom, huh? it makes a man like scotty — who has a softer, edgeless cadence unless he puts that edge in there with intention— flinch when his voice bounces back to him, even if just for a second. there's a quick recovery as far as his expression goes, the shock so momentary that his facial features return to what they'd been previously: resting easy on the fence between pensive and concerned. one might call him anxious, even — a little riled up. his fingers twitch at his sides and he looks around the endless lot like he's worried someone's coming after him, but he's actually the one scanning. "... uh — you seen a kitty cat? 'bout... this big." cue scotty making a vague estimate with his hands in front of his chest; nevermind the blood on his hand, either; or the wobble to his step, for that matter. scotty asks his company this, half-expecting the other man to walk away and starting to peer under what few cars are in the lot for said cat. "'s cold, man. i don't wanna leave 'er out 'ere..."

... it's not his cat. he's pretty sure he followed it from the junkyard, actually.

[strayslost]

Sigma didn't know that his feelings on a person could change so wildly over the course of only ten or so minutes. Dazai is... almost impossible for him to comprehend.

He was so sure that the man only intended to use him, and truth be told, he still doesn't think he's entirely wrong in that assessment. Dazai is a wickedly clever man, one who knows how to make a chess piece out of everyone he meets, and certainly not someone Sigma should ever underestimate. But even so... why can't Sigma hate him?

Is it because Dazai saved his life? ...What a foolish reason. He only needed Sigma to save that agency of his, nothing more. But... Dazai nearly sacrificed his own life to do it. In the end, in spite of everything, he had something - someone, who he was willing to give up everything for, despite the fact that if he died he'd get nothing in return. Maybe that's why Sigma is so drawn to him. He wants to know more- about that kind of desire. Because Dazai isn't stupid - he's the smartest man Sigma knows, and yet he'd decided that trusting in others was worth it...

There's far more to thoughts than just that, but right now, Sigma's head is racing enough already. Most of all, though - when he looks at Dazai, he can't help but feel an overwhelming sense of shame. He wishes he didn't... he knows he might be being used again, fooled again, and yet- he can't help but hate that he let Dazai down.

"Dazai... why are you here...?"

@hopesprung ( starter for dazai! )

[celestialheal-arch]

it's honestly more curiosity than a desire to help, what leads her to ask. she's always been perceptive of others' pain, even before she took her oath and she has seen the way shadowheart flexes her hand almost involuntarily in her idle moments. and thing is, nienna has seen her in action, her skill as a cleric is nothing if not impressive; hells, she may actually be a better healer than herself, but then... why is it she's not healing whatever is hurting her?

they just got back from their latest expedition and the warlock can see the way she's flexing her hand again. without a second thought, she raises to her feet and finds herself walking towards the cleric. ❝ would you like me to take a look? something's clearly bothering that hand of yours. ❞

@nerimoi liked for a starter.

[ofhope]

“So uh, question...”

Picking at a stray scab, Kanji opts to look anyplace else. Why, despite being instilled into every which person from birth, was asking for — anything such a hassle? Suppose it was the delicacy, how fast the subject could break when given to another person. All of this? Had to be found out on his own, through hearsay and fleeting newspaper passages. Online got him nowhere, purposefully: Kanji preferred the words, the face-to-face interaction. However, when faced with sincerity, perhaps anonymity was - truly - the right route.

This was stupid.

“How bad's a tattoo hurt? 'm no stranger to pain, but I've heard it stings the shit outta' your arm. I gotta use that to work, so... if I'm out a day or two of work, I wanna' schedule ahead of time.”

@dumbthink!

[wisheswagered]

Anne knows better than to trust this man.

She knows better, but... there's something about him. It's not just his face - the same one she's seen in her nightmares-turned-hallucinations, achingly familiar and yet just out of reach from recognition... No, she feels like something in her wants to be there for him. Something in her trusts him, and it's bitterly that she forces herself to remember her truth - no adults can be trusted.

She won't be betrayed again. It's not like there aren't good people in the world, Anne knows... or maybe that's not the case, and everyone really is a monster? It doesn't really matter, you see, because there's no way to know for sure - so she'll protect herself by staying distant from them all. Anne is no longer a puppet to be used and thrown away - no, she's a toy with wooden wings, flying free; far away from those who would want to hurt her.

"Welcome!" she says with a smile. It's the same smile as ever, a friendly and warm one, a smile that speaks - 'I'm harmless', it says, 'and I trust you, really, I do.' At the very least, she's happy to have a visitor to her store, one who might see her beloved toys and adore them, even if she'd rather they go to a child in need.

"I've never seen your face here before. I do hope you enjoy my little store."

@celestiialnotes ( starter! )

[mvrderbot]

@light-imperfected​ // event sc.

       this had already gotten farther than murderbot had wanted it to; despite its precautions and experience in dealing with a situation like this, it must have had contact with some of the spores. its’ performance reliability had fallen by ten percent in the last two hours - and that was all without being shot at. pain kept flashing across all of its’ sensors and diagnostic programs, and even though it had turned down its’ ability to actually feel the influx of sensory data, it wasn’t able to entirely dissociate from it for very long. it had managed to keep quiet, though - until one of its drones was able to spot some sort of ( construct? ) approaching. performance reliability dropping to 87.3%.

        lifting its visor, murderbot tried to keep a level and calm voice when it spoke. “ be careful. i’m - contaminated. “ despite its best attempts, it winced - it could feel the plants practically trying to drag more out of it. when it opened its eyes again, it looked the stranger over - analyzing the other’s appearance. ah. so he had been exposed to these plants, too, judging by the flowers. that eased at least a little of its guilt. “ ... my name is murderbot. ” it froze, face turning pale and performance reliability dropping further. it only let a rare few know that name, and the fact that it had just offered that up unprompted made it feel ill.

[togethersmiled]

“Sensei!”

Ochako, caught off-guard by her teacher’s sudden presence, jumps in surprise as her head whips round to face his. ...Did he just get here, or has he been here for a while already? Sometimes she swears Aizawa is so sneaky, like he’s a ghost or something...

Shaking off those ridiculous thoughts, Ochako flushes a little in embarrassment as she realize he caught her staring off into space. It’s not like she was crying or anything, but she can’t help but worry - did he see how upset she was just now? She doesn’t want to bother him, especially when he’s been through so much for her sake already...

“Umm, you scared me! Ahaha...”

...He’s not gonna give her a lecture on being caught-off guard so easily, right?

@eraseur​ ( starter for aizawa! )

[stormbcrn]

"ASK THE GOOD MASTERS of Astapor about my dragons, if you doubt them. I've seen a slaver's eyes melt and go running down his cheeks." / @celestieu, sc.

[unladielike]

STARTER CALL ( @antiprotag​ ) — 𝕒𝕕𝕒𝕞 𝕚𝕤 𝕒𝕡𝕡𝕣𝕠𝕒𝕔𝕙𝕖𝕕 𝕓𝕪 𝕒 𝕓𝕖𝕤𝕡𝕖𝕔𝕥𝕒𝕔𝕝𝕖𝕕 𝕪𝕠𝕦𝕟𝕘 𝕝𝕒𝕕𝕪 𝕨𝕙𝕠 𝕚𝕤 𝕦𝕟𝕕𝕖𝕣 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕚𝕞𝕡𝕣𝕖𝕤𝕤𝕚𝕠𝕟 𝕙𝕖'𝕤 𝕒 𝕙𝕠𝕞𝕖𝕝𝕖𝕤𝕤, 𝕕𝕚𝕤𝕗𝕚𝕘𝕦𝕣𝕖𝕕 𝕞𝕒𝕟.

    “Jeez... did you forget your umbrella again, Addie-kins?” Though her tone was gently chastising, Vivian would still lift the black canopy from her own gamp to shield his damp, ashen white locks from the relentless onslaught of pouring rain. Unfortunately, Vancouver wasn’t known for it’s sunny weather, so she doesn’t doubt his time in the city must have been rather... rough. “Or did you somehow accidentally destroy it like last time?”Sure enough, she’ll then edge closer towards him until their shoulders almost brushed before peering up at him rather curiously.

    “Welp, whatever the case... do you maybe wanna head back inside with me? The campus’ Starbucks should still be open at this hour, so I could at least buy you a warm drink. What do you say?”