11th Turn [Written/Action]

[redjacketthief]

Luceti.

Two things:

1. Whoever it was that found my work shop, return the pieces that you stole before the end of the day. I’ll be in the Barracks. If you fail to comply, I will find you.

It won’t be pretty.

2. What do the rest of you think about the last Shift? Was it good or bad? How did the loss of memory affect you? Do you think it left any long-term impact for yourself, your friends, and the rest of your stay in this village?

-Also. Prism Black. You deserve to be commended for your heroism. Never forget that.

Filtered to Trafalgar Law: Unhackable

I have a problem and I’d like a second opinion on it. It’s not big, but it could become complicated.

-I’d promise coffee, but I have an unrelated problem with getting it. I’ll be in the barracks.


[True to his word, Lupin will be in the barracks all day. His encounter with Spock on Monday, combined with his activities from earlier in the week had finally caught up to him. Fatigue was inevitable. He had spent the better part of the last few days asleep, never very far from his new charge. The veritable plague of crows that had been set upon him by an angered god was an unnecessary incentive. He kept the windows shut, locked away the gnawing need for a cigarette that bit at the back of his mind, and tried to ignore the judgement he saw reflected in the eyes of his avian watchmen—but he would have stayed close to the barracks regardless of their looming (and aggravating) presence.

While the days spent between dreams and fleeting considerations over recent affairs had rejuvenated him, it didn't stop the inherent restlessness that was his constant foe—the core problem that would never entirely leave. The people who knew him would be able to identify the briskness of his step and the cool control with which he held every action and every word. He was distracted by a new project , one that was completely foreign to him, and was unwilling to divulge details until the proper time came.

The thief had returned to work, but nothing was as it seemed.]



((ooc: Thread with Spock is chronologically last.))

Comments

[Action]

[redjacketthief]

[He smiled at the comment in amusement and offered a salute. Yes, he'd keep Law informed on that.]

the haki thing could be an interesting thing to study if it comes up. if. it might not.

Did you want me to bring Spock in for a physical once he's more [a pause of consideration.] stable?

[Action]

[daisy023]

[She sits. She lowers her head until it leans over her hands.]

There was a time the Malnosso wanted to try something else when they knew they were hated in our enclosure. Something even Bil would take advantage of. To change that... They implanted everyone with false memories.

Not of our worlds. But of this one. Friends, organizations, and families were created to accommodate them. Thinking that the Malnosso had always protected us. Had they gotten their way, they would have made it permanent.

... Everyone thought they were born and raised in this world. Everyone thought we were all parts of various families.

[Her expression remains solid. However, her fingers continue to clench with an unusual strength. Had her bones not been augmented, she would have broken them.]

It wasn't like the aftermath of getting sent into others' worlds. This was intentional. This was weaved too carefully.

It was all meant to give us the perfect life.

[With the last sentence, there will be something very few had ever heard of Daisy. Her voice almost breaks as she speaks.]

Imagine it in dozens that never got to have families or normal lives in their worlds. And then waking up to realize it wasn't true. Imagine the rage and helplessness in seeing something so beautiful used to keep us in check.

Had Bil come out the week after he hid in the Dome during the experiment, many of us would have torn him to pieces.

[Action]

[redjacketthief]

[He had heard of that Shift then, in passing. It was part of the reason why Smoker adopted Keimi as his daughter. Lupin listened attentively to Daisy's thorough explanation, getting the impression that she was conducting herself like a soldier who was briefing a newcomer on the situation. She was a soldier, he knew, and of the sort who would be hard to rattle.

But the loss of memories had shaken her before, to the point where she worked herself beyond exhaustion in the Dome. Comparatively, such loss of memory wasn't unusual in his world. He was so acclimated to it's possibility that the Malnosso had yet to truly disturb him with it.

However, he understood. It wasn't isolated brainwashing, but on a mass scale...with the illusion of a utopia. That would send many, many people in a rage.

He bowed his head as well when he heard the crack in her voice, and was ashamed because of it. She was the third person he had left shaken solely by accident because of this Shift. That itself was more disturbing to him more than the explanation.

He never meant to bring such memories up.

A heavy moment passed at the end of her explanation as Lupin fought for a simple word phrase--anything that he could write down. Had he a voice, it would have been useless. He had no words to offer.

Instead he reached out a hesitant hand and gently placed it on her shoulder. Were she a different kind of woman, someone less militant and stern, he would have offered a hug.

This would suffice, if he hadn't breached any boundaries.]

[Action]

[deathsdoctor]

[Hmming]

It might.

[Although if it did, he would have to see what people had in mind when it came to 'studying'. Unsurprisingly, that was a sensitive subject to tread on for him and likely the other pirates (and Smoker).]

I would. We'll need to have a long talk about medical needs for his species. Frankly he'll throw all of us in the clinic for a loop.

You will also need to tell him what I did.

[Action]

[redjacketthief]

[Studying would only be recording patterns, in his mind. Maybe a pointed survey about what happened and how they viewed it--turn it into a psychological analysis. He also had his qualms about anything on a higher scale, because he's seen what can happen to otherwise reasonable men.

Lupin nodded for both comments. He suspected as much, which was why he didn't contact Law sooner. The Battle Dome was in all likelyhood frighteningly underprepared for Spock should he be gravely injured.

He was also fully prepared to tell Spock about Law's cursory examination and about the haki. It was only fair, and he wasn't sure how he could keep anything quiet from Spock any longer.

It was an uncomfortable, even concerning prospect for him. After the fight with Luke and Adele, he was questioning his every decision. Perhaps it had been a mistake to place that much faith in them. He didn't know.

He didn't like not knowing.]

that was the plan. we can talk about that mission at a different time if you're busy. I'm curious about what you found.

we also should get coffee. and we need to stop meeting like this.

[weaponry]

Yeah! It's a high ranked ninja. The highest rank a ninja usually can obtain. They go on high ranked missions that sometimes hang the entire fate of the community in their balance! They also can train proteges! [ And she'd love this. So much. She needs this rank, like oxygen. ]

[Action]

[goldenglasses]

Huh, pecked to death by birds sounds like a terrible way to go. So what'd you do to get so many birds mad at you? Were you throwing rocks at them or something?

[redjacketthief]

[headtilt.]

so they're mentors and black ops?

[Action]

[redjacketthief]

yeah. lets go with that.

[he didn't feel like explaining angry gods to a stranger.]

[Action]

[deathsdoctor]

A less stressful time, yes.

[Breathing a chuckle.]

I think we better break that habit, yes. This goes on, people will think we only meet up when things hit the fan.

[Action]

[redjacketthief]

coffee and snacks.

I'm planning a party for next month. you and Itachi are more than welcome to come to it. Hope you don't mind cake, the party's for Fujiko.

[weaponry]

Pretty much! It's my dream to become a famous one that can prove men and women are equal. [ Konoha has their own black ops but Tenten doesn't feel the need to explain this. She'll be prompted to reveal the difference and she'll have to talk about how they're guards and answer to the hokage directly and how everything they do is top secret, even down to their identities. Then she'll be asked for distinctions when it's just hard to explain. You have to see it for yourself. ]

[redjacketthief]

[Hold that thought--he's hit by something]

You mean that Civil Rights hasn't happened in your world?

[Action]

[deathsdoctor]

Hmm... we'll try. Itachi really dislikes parties though. I have to run it past him.

[Not with Smoker and Grell there though. Some couples were better off not mixing.]

Though if I can't persuade him on the party, I think we could swing a couple's dinner at Seventh Heaven.

[Action]

[redjacketthief]

[A nod. Grell would come and Smoker wouldn't, that much he could say for certain. Smoker thought he was insane for dating an assassin, but Grell and Fujiko got on grandly.]

that sounds good. very good. I'm looking forward to it, especially since we'll all need something to look forward to once it starts to get cold.

[And after Halloween, if the patterns he had heard about stayed true. Beyond that, November brought along some very important dates for Lupin.

He had been in Luceti for almost a year. The thought was strange and disconcerting to him.]

[Action]

[deathsdoctor]

And after Halloween. Not looking forward to that one. They can get pretty sick with that ghost festival.

Keep him warm. It should only be a few hours more.

[He'll teleport out. Avoid the crows.]

Action]

[goldenglasses]

Well, that's not very nice! No wonder they're mad at you! You shouldn't throw stones at birds you know.

[weaponry]

Women have the same rights as men, but men just doubt their worth as warriors. It runs deeper than just rights.

[redjacketthief]

I see.

You'll do a fantastic job at proving them wrong!

[weaponry]

I hope I can! I'm already making a name for myself on the battlefield!! I helped take out a recently revived s-ranked criminal!

[redjacketthief]

[wide.

gap.


he is stunned by the awesome after he translates 's-ranked criminal.']






that's really cool ten-chan!

[doubleppk]

[She reads through it, taking longer than necessary, simply to bug Lupin and so she can imagine it in his voice. Fujiko does what she wants.]

Fun people? Anyone I know?

[Or more specifically, should be worried about. Note, she said nothing about the first part. On purpose. It needed saying, but now she's got to sidestep the hell out of it lest they get too close again. Ah yes, their oldest dance of them all.]

[redjacketthief]

[He huffed, amused. She could get away with her side stepping even as he tried to execute a twirl. The rhythm would swing back.]

Gambit. Steve Rogers. Grell. Harry Dresden. A couple of my other friends too. [He figured that Fujiko wouldn't be interested in them.] It's also closer to the plaza. We can get to the shops easier, and there's more people. Don't you think it will be fun?

[doubleppk]

Grell? Interesting. [Lupin wants to move... closer to Grell? There are warning bells all over this. Seeing as Grell half threatened to kill Lupin to make Fujiko or him admit their feelings for each other.]

Mm-hm! I'm sure it will be lots of fun! [Yup. Moving in with dangerous people is obviously a fantastic policy. Ah well, that is why Lupin will be her guard dog for a little while. She does seem a little too enthusiastic about it for Fujiko, but hey, enthusiasm is a good thing, right? Even if it means she's plotting; she's always plotting.]

[redjacketthief]

[Lupin only made his decision because he could count four people in the building who knew what happened in June and three others that he knew for a fact were fun. Grell was also one of the few people who knew what happened immediately upon his return, without him telling her anything. Her understanding was important to him, regardless of the potential danger that followed her every move.

She was Death. Lupin never feared her.

He grinned in reply to her enthusiasm and nodded in agreement with her words. Moving in with dangerous people was always a fantastic policy, especially since he had a feeling that seven of them would have his back in the event of another wave of 'tourists.'

They could help defend the safehouse if he could not, and that was far better than continuing their game of musical apartments.]