redjacketthief | 6th Turn [Voice/Action]

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6th Turn [Voice/Action]

[It's mid-afternoon when the journal post is made by a familiar voice in an unfamiliar mood. A quick look at the image reveals a face that is both familiar and unfamiliar--but that smile, with it's odd curl and suppressed mirth, can mean it is only one person.]

[Failed Filter to Mine Fujiko: Completely Readable]

Hey...Fujiko? Remember that game you gave me at the end of the last month before you went on your mission? It was very clever, and the prize has been a joy. How did you know I liked history books? I'm wondering, though...why are you having me read about your ex-boyfriend's grandfather, after you made it clear that you don't want to think about it?

[There's a pause as the man notices the feed.] Oh... blast it! I messed, Fujiko. Want to meet in my place?

...Everyone, disregard that.

[Later that day the man wanders the town, his hair in a mussed disarray and red jacket noticeably missing. Instead he wears dark colors, fitted but more casual clothes, and his wings are for once in the open. He's headed to the library to return some books, gather others and other supplies. Early that evening, another journal post is made. This time, it's intended for anyone.]

Evening, Luceti, this is Red. I was just wondering...is anyone else around here missing about twenty-one hours of their weekend? Does anybody who isn't know what happened? It's just a question for inquiring minds.

Also--has anybody actually given the Battle Dome a good once over after last week?

[He's serious in his words, even if the smile is light. Ladies and Gentleman, meet the man who's going to be adamant about calling himself Red...someone you're more likely to know as Arsene Lupin III. He's not going to stand down from that either.]

[OOC: Details about how Lupin has been shifted, for the curious, are here. He has a number of physical details in terms of style that are changing beyond what's available to me in normal fanart and screencaps, so I've had to choose a PB, ~~Emiya Kiritsugu~~ a man from another anime that I've yet to actually see. Replies will have appropriate icons, thanks.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Well, if you're dropped back home tomorrow and you remember your time here, that's for you to decide isn't it? Maybe there are records that I just haven't found--I'm no historian, I just like data mining from time to time as a diversion.

We don't know what comes tomorrow, but maybe you can alter your fate a little bit.

I would not have left Ben to watch Luke on his own. I would not have left Luke if I could have helped it. There are precious few instances where I give my word, Red, but I gave it to his mother. I swore I would do whatever I could to keep him safe.

[Not that it would save him. Not that it would save Ben. The lingering threat of inevitability was starting to make her itch again, and it was terribly difficult to shake it off.]

The past is past. We cannot predict the future, unless it's already been written. However I go? I can only know I go down swinging.

So long as you know that, you should have no shame over something you haven't even met yet. If you think you'll go down in a fight, you probably will--but you see how Luke is now. Obviously, he didn't come out terrible.

...We probably would still be under Imperial control if he wasn't around.

Maybe you should count that as a success?

I suspect that is more due to his training with Ben and Master Yoda, knowing his sister, and the friends he has made along the way. [The smile she offers Red is grateful.]

When we leave? We'll never have met. And I do not know if you will remember- but thank you. For knowing him and being there for him, since I cannot. He'll need someone like you far more than he would someone like me.

Me? I'm just a man who likes the shadows too much, Goldie. There's not much I can do for him that I haven't already tried at some point.

...I do best where the light doesn't reach me. He shines. [It was something he hadn't expected to see ever as he worked his way around the underworld of Nar Shaddaa, didn't even expect to see when he jumped at the opportunity to join the Rebel Alliance.]

I'm really just a nobody. I like it that way. But, even nobodies like me are probably someone he'd take some kind of lesson from. He's probably learned something from everyone he's encountered.

It never gets too cold in the dark, does it? There's always company enough there.

[Luke did shine. That much was certain. He burned as bright and brilliant as his father...and that could terrify her in no small way. The brightest stars burn out too fast. Destroyed by their own brilliance. She can only hope it is not the case for Luke.]

You can keep him grounded. Nobodies are excellent anchors. A different point of view, a voice of reason amongst the chaos...

[This became far too somber too quickly. She manages a half grin.] Besides. You're not a nobody to me red.

[She had a point to her words. Everything, even the brightest of individuals, needed someone to be their balance around. Like the Force, with it's begnine and darker uses, like how a star sometimes becomes a black hole...

Red matches her smile, feeling a tad brighter himself.]

Thanks, Goldie. It's nice sometimes to not be a nobody to someone.

Lairs, slicers, and thieves Red. The nobodies that are never nobodies to each other. Because we're always fun. [She chuckles and gives his ribs a slight poke.] We'll be fine. Missing day notwithstanding- There's plenty of trouble to make, or avoid, here. I think I might invite everyone to the house for Sabaac in a few days. Ginia's laid up and missing the company.

Fun people are the best kind too! [He dodges the poke, but swings her backward so that she's off balance as a means of retaliation. The grin indicates that it's clearly in jest, but Red knows that he's walking the fine line of enjoying himself too much.]

Sabacc sounds like a great idea, especially if we can help bring some fun to another person who needs it--and who will be willing to accept it.

It's been a while since I last spoke to Ginia. This will be nice.

Red! [She flails a bit, laughing the whole while as she catches her balance.]

You. You are terrible. I'm not inviting you to Sabaac night now.

[That pout! He tilts forward and kisses it, grinning like one of the smug cats that sometimes wander through the village.]

Am I invited now?

[She may have been counting on that. Just a bit. Giggling she leans back.]

Hmmm....I don't know.

[Another kiss is pressed against his lips with a warm chuckle.]

How about now?

[And now for a thoughtful look.]

I'm thinking~

[A third follows, and he wraps his arms around her slim, petite frame to pull her body up against his, her long blonde hair atumble and soft between his fingers. Contact breaks after a heart beat, but he stares deep into her blue eyes in search of some kind of clue to her game.]

Having enough fun now?

[Now she's laughing helplessly, arms loose and comfortable around Red's shoulders, tucking his head under her chin for the brief moment of contact. Yes, that sated the odd itch in the back of her head more than enough. Her game, as ever, was to banish that lingering discomfort, that pain from everyone else she feels but never truly wanted. With Red? It's easy to ignore.]

I am, and you're re-invited. [She reaches up and boops his nose.]

[The teasing gesture is returned with a wry grin and yet another kiss, this time not quite as gentle as the one's before.]

Good. I'd hate to miss Sabacc night, even if we do have no credits to bet. Maybe making it a game of Strip Sabacc would help fix that little problem there?

I'm onto you. You just want to see Ginia naked. [She rests her cheek against his forehead, huffing a soft laugh.] And you know I don't want you flirting with her too much Red, and not just because it'll make me jealous.

[Giles was, is, a lingering memory. Several months on, now, but that didn't lessen the ache.] Then again...a bit of fun might help her since she can't get out as much. H should find her some male company.

I flirt with a lot of girls though, Goldie. Does that also make you jealous? [He chuckles, knowing full well the deeper meaning of her words. It was all a ploy to play, to get Ginia to laugh if only for a short while.]

She needs to play a little, Goldie. She's a flirt at heart too, you know. Maybe a few games will help her forget her worries. ...also, do you mean Helios? Is it just me, or is he acting a little strange lately?

I flirt with plenty of men as well Pateesa. I know you don't mind. [She chuckles and looks out at the plaza, thinking about how very handsome all the men in the village could be, and how many were boring. It was a little saddening at times when they were pretty but dull.]

Helios is...not stuttering, and not inclined to magic. Ginia doesn't seem to mind it, though so there can't be that much wrong with him. [She shrugs.]

Oh, so it's not just me. [There's a sigh of relief at that--he was beginning to worry when so many people were asking him what was wrong, and then acting like there was nothing strange with Helios as he currently is. The idea of him being a wizard was more absurd.

Red kisses her again on the forehead and pulls back.] It's a relief, honestly. This place does strange things to the mind, even if it did help me meet you. It's also relieving that we get along so well.

Most women that I've met couldn't deal with my playing with other people, or the constraints of my job.

No. People are acting odd all over the village. The only point of commonality I've found is that whoever is acting different is also missing time from Sunday. None of them remember.

[And that is what worries her. Because she doesn't remember Sunday. Does that mean she's a false version of herself? It'd give her a headache to think on it, but it's soothed away by Red without him ever knowing she needs it.]

You are what you are Red, you do what you must. I'm not going to get honestly mad at you for something I also do. That's not fair. And while I might cheat when it suits me, I always make at least an attempt to be fair.

And that's why being around you is a joy, Goldie. There's no stress, and it's all fair.

[The small amount of new information, however, did bother him. He loved his life, loved his work, and didn't want to give any of it up. Even for the Malnosso. No, especially for the Malnosso.

There was nothing he could do about it for now, except investigate the Battle Dome. The fight was wearing on him, however. Perhaps not thinking, and that hike that he and Luke had planned for the afternoon, would be ideal.]

[It had crossed Adele's mind as well, the odds of this, her life, being false. She's already made arrangements to pass on useful and relevant information to her true self afterward; but that doesn't mean she's eager for it to be false.]

You are a welcome spot of serenity in an otherwise chaotic environment Pateesa. [She gives him a squeeze.] You plan on taking time for yourself today? I don't like it when my favorite slicer is stressed or weary.

[He returns the squeeze, grateful for it.] I'll be fine, Goldie. It's a crazy thing that's going on, is all. I just want to get to the bottom of it.

No worries. I've got Luke here, after all. We watch out for each other.

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