IC INBOX| SCHNEIDER

[unweathered]

@Doves

unweathered

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Week 4, after the meeting

[bloodandstars]

[ Normally Maika would just go looking for someone in these circumstances so they can't pretend to dodge her concern questions. But she doesn't know Schneider's haunts, so she's reduced to using the irritating little device that Kururu instructed her on in the first week. ]

Found something to break yet?

[ Maybe with that suggestion she can just triangulate by sound. Although she half expects that now, Schneider will be saving her bullets again. ]

[unweathered]

[ Schneider hadn't expected anyone to reach out after that. Why would they? They had already made it clear they would support an execution if it was sold in flowery words and speech. Schneider, who lived her life in blood and no desire to sand over her cruelties with pretty little things, must be an affront.

It takes a moment because these things are still new to her too but]

you say that as if all i know is violence. I'm at the arcade.

[shiny, loud, sparkling.

and with things to break that wouldn't cost her a fortune]

[bloodandstars]

No, that's me. Room for another player?

[ She's not actually waiting for Schneider to answer before she's on her way. She can't stand being still right now; games don't sound nearly as satisfying as feeling something break under her fist, but she'll certainly take it.

If Schneider doesn't make good her escape, Maika will be popping through the doorway of the arcade very shortly, scoping out the occupants as casually as can be. ]

[unweathered]

oddly enough a team doesn't sound bad at all

[ Maika will find Schneider in the center of a crowd, gunning down a hoard of zombies on the screen, racking up an impossibly high score already]

[bloodandstars]

[ Maika pauses to watch for a second — she can admire skill in most forms, and she knows a good markswoman when she sees one. Plus, it gives her a moment to figure out what the game is about and how it works. Something about the subject makes a corner of her mouth twitch wryly, but at a level transition when she won't distract Schneider, she steps in to pick up the gun. ]

Planning on leaving me any small fry?

[unweathered]

Despite what some people think, I'm a very generous person.

[ But if Maika has shit aim, that generosity will disappear soon. Bang bang bang!]

[bloodandstars]

If you weren't, it wouldn't've been a warning shot earlier.

[ Maika's familiar with guns, though they're far from her favorite. She's not going to try to compete with Schneider; but there's still something soothing in picking off the targets at the sides, finding which areas Schneider isn't covering and adjusting as she goes. ]

Week 8(?) masquerade

[bloodandstars]

[ There wasn't really time before the thread vanished — thankfully, to Maika's thinking — to clarify that she doesn't drink. Although, who knows? Depending on where her mood takes her tonight, she might change her mind. But she pauses to liberate a bottle of sparkling nonalcoholic cider and whatever snacks can be easily carried.

You know what? This is probably another reason she doesn't usually wear dresses. Where the hell does she stash things in a dress? But it's fine. Thanks to Falin's good nature and a little help, she has two hands to hold things in now. And she's comfortable enough with Schneider that she doesn't mind the casual intimacy of nudging her with a shoulder when she finds her in the gathering. ]

Where to?

[unweathered]

[Oh. There's Maika. She looks up at Maika in appreciation. Schneider herself is dressed in a feathery blue dress, with a matching mask.]

Very nice. [Her gaze lingers on the additional arm for a moment but she holds up a bottle of wine? and grins]

Lets head back to the dorms. Or the park. This is getting stuffy.

[And despite herself, her gaze can't help but linger on the strings. Hm]

[bloodandstars]

[ Maika's brow crimps a little in something like amusement, and she gives Schneider's dress a little nod too. She's not getting any smoother with the compliments, it seems. ]

Park. I could use the fresh air, too.

[ Clear her head, after... wherever her thoughts have been taking her. She follows Schneider's glance instinctively — she's hardly taken note of the strings all evening, but Schneider can certainly feel strong protectiveness, mingled with respect and a desire to spend time with her. ]

[unweathered]

Good answer.

[ Schneider smiles and turns on her heel to lead the way, blatantly taking the wine with her. Schneider's feelings are similar; respect and warmth, a little attraction, and a general sense of ??? alongside the desire to be near
Maika and learn more about her.

Even with the threads, Schneider's feelings are a touch muddled ]

[bloodandstars]

[ Maika's far from adept at reading the strings in the first place — her fingers flit towards them for a second before she turns the gesture into casually pushing her bangs back and tossing her head a little. ]

You're in a generous mood again. You know... I thought parties might be more your thing.

[ Or maybe not. There's always a performance to them, or when other people's eyes are on her, isn't there? ]

[unweathered]

[ Schneider glances back, falling into step with Maika and casually linking arms with her. Be her escort]

Not like these. Too tame... boring. Not enough action.

before the orcharding

[moonshaded]

[Schneider is elusive like she is, so Kainé doesn't bother checking the dorms first. She already knows that she probably isn't there.

Kainé is normally...content, giving others space when they take it. If they want to get away from her, then whatever. But something has its hooks in her now, an insidious voice blossoming in her mind that has nothing to do with Tyrann's smug, hedonistic blood lust. She's felt the vanishing, the disintegration, all for herself, at the mercy of Schneider's nightmares. It's a sensation she doesn't want to repeat.

It's too late for most stores to be open, which rules out most of the shops where she might otherwise be digging through the racks. The park should also be mostly closed, but that doesn't stop anyone who knows how to get in. Kainé's spent her share of nights here. It's less like the city and more like some quiet play-pretend place away from it...in the middle of it.

And...yeah, found her.]

Thank fuck, I won't have to go on some puzzle-solving dungeon crawl to get you to come back.[God, would she do that? Some people would notice Schneider's absence quickly, too - more than would notice hers, she's sure - but Kainé doesn't know when they'd start digging or if she'd be the first to go.]

[unweathered]

[People don't peg Schneider for it, with the way she dresses and behaves. But she's always been more at ease in nature, without buildings stifling her and leaving her trigger finger itchy for a fight, ready to eliminate a would-be hitman before they got to her first. This is not at all an orchard or a forest, but it's as close to it as it comes. She's on a swing, pushing herself off lazily as she watches the stormy clouds darken the sky in the distance.

She didn't think anyone would come looking for her. If people might notice her absence...she can't fathom it. She looks up at Kaine, her lips curving up into a smile that doesn't meet her eyes. Behind her, her shadow seems to be more present than ever as the lines between the real world and Nekiya blur further]

Mmm? I would like to think no god here has the power to compel me to create some place for people to dig through my brain and memories.

[a pause, a moment of confusion]

You were looking for me?

[moonshaded]

Yeah, you'd forcefeed him his own lackeys' guts before something like that happened. [Famous last words, from both of them...but that's to realize later, when the trees have grown in and Schneider really can't be found. Kainé leans her back against the A-frame of the swingset, tapping her heel a few times in lazy agitation.]

It's a free park. ...When it's open. You wouldn't find an upstanding hero out here alone after hours. [Without saying yes, she means she did come looking on purpose... and that they're probably the same in believing that most people would leave them alone - and should, maybe.]

You gonna camp out here tonight? [The weather isn't great for it; it's dreary, and the sky smells like a storm that hasn't happened yet. The worse it gets out here, the more unforgiven it is for the strays to find a place to set up when they don't want to go indoors.]

[unweathered]

Mmmhmm. It only suits people like us. Not-heroes. Villains...do you think that's what we are?

[Schneider smiles again, her gaze drifting up to the stormy sky. The smell of rain is heavy in the air and her stomach gives a little lurch and grumble. She hasn't eaten all day but the fear of placing food in her mouth and finding it tasted like the rancid undersides of a garbage bin again had been overwhelming.

She would simply not eat than risk it.]

...no. I hate the rain now. It is not the weather for camping.

[Eventually, much much later, Schneider will return. Whether she retreats to her own shared dorm room with Aerith, hide with Maika or just...spend the night endlessly doing anything else is up in the air. But then she turns to Kaine]

Ah, but if you are here...then you are company I more than welcome. That might change a thing or two.

[moonshaded]

Eh. I don't think I give enough of a shit to be either. You're better off asking someone else what they think of me - maybe one of the real do-gooders here. Pretty sure they'd say something embarrassing about you.

[There's no refuting the rain or Schneider's hatred of it. It's making her itch listening to the dry rumble in the distance, waiting for the shoe to drop and the water to fall. The nightmares might be over, but there are parts of them everywhere. Parts of them were always there. Sometimes being awake is bad enough.

God, what a shitty mood she's in. Kainé feels like she's monologuing in her head. Or maybe that's Tyrann's voice, a fake mockery of it, she images from her own other form lingering in mirrors and the depths of sleep. His voice was there for so long it rings perfectly. Got a crush, princess? Putting on a big brave show because someone might not hate your guts for once? Hot stuff, at least you're used to blowing them up again and again and again.

She looks at the specter of Schneider's shadow, how close it's hovering, and silently determines that she won't be leaving again unless she's driven out. So very aware of the emptiness of her hands, she flexes one a few times.]

Change what? I've got nowhere else to be. I'd be out here anyway. So... I'll stay. with you

[unweathered]

Mmm... you'd be surprised. Making a point makes people angry. And people are quick to make justifications for people they have already decided is righteous and not. [ Schneider doesn't mind. She was glad that at back of people's minds, when they saw her, they remembered a little fear.

Good.

She jumps off her swing, digging her heels into the grass. If it was anyone else she would have chased them away. Or she would have left without a second glance backwards.

But Kaine had listened to her.

She turns her head, looking back. For a moment, she feels very uncertain and very vulnerable]

If you say it like that...I might take it a different way.

Will you really? Even if I ask you to hold me?

"shay the game's ending" yeah idc i want my post-grove thread still

[moonshaded]

[Once the enchantment of the orange grove has been broken, and all those splintered memories have slotted back into place, the weight of things forgotten or at risk of being forgotten is overwhelmingly heavy.

She's been keeping her promise to maintain some distance so Kirumi can figure herself out, and they can't exactly both climb into Maika's window like stray cats at the same time. So they get a quiet room out of the way somewhere, easy and painless even if it takes most of the pocket money Kainé still has.

(It's the one thing she hasn't gotten used to in the city and the one thing she might miss about it when this is all over. People don't automatically recoil in disgust or fear, even at their worst. Kainé's almost gotten used to not flinching like a hit dog waiting for it to happen.)

She tastes all the food they ordered, starting with a few bites from Schneider's plate when she isn't touching them.] That's way too sweet, [she warns. But it tastes normal.]

this is important we will not stop

[unweathered]

[ Honestly, Kaine should just use Schneider's money because she has plenty of it and no use for it anymore. But she lets Kaine treat her, because she is that type of woman and relaxes minutely when Kaine tastes the food]

Mmm? Cakes should be sweet, no?

[She takes a bite and...ah. Hm. She cocks her head in thought]

Sweet, but it would go well with a black coffee.

[moonshaded]

[Schneider can treat her when it's her turn to take them on a brief escape from the world.

...Oh. But that's unlikely to happen, isn't it?

Anyway, she told her so. Kainé watches her try the cake with a flat expression that says as much.]

Isn't that what that thing's for? [She tosses her head suspiciously in the direction of the cheap coffee maker propped up on the hotel wardrobe. The device is probably harmless, but she just doesn't know enough about the nuances of good coffee.]

[unweathered]

You haven't tried it? [Her gaze settles on the coffee maker and she smiles, getting up] That wont do. We don't have much more time left with these unique pieces of technology.

[moonshaded]

Meh. [It had never been a priority. There was food everywhere here, and it was always easy to get, and maybe she had enjoyed that, too, too much to worry about how to fix up her own.

Kainé watches Schenider get up, keeping her eyes on her even when she walks away. It takes her a moment to respond.]

... Right. Not much time. It's now or never.

[unweathered]

[The problem with being fragmented is that, it becomes difficult to place all her pieces back together. Nothing fits quite right, misaligned and disjointed, and Schneider is all the more aware of things that shouldn't be there, in someone like her, who had no future and no past anymore.]

It's all about taking advantage of the moment, no?

[Schneider makes them a coffee - it's not going to be any good, but it will do - and carries over the cup, passing it over to Kaine, letting their fingers brush together]