genessia | August 28th - Downward Spiral

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August 28th - Downward Spiral

[ Nothing has been the same since she returned. No matter how many dinner parties and picnics, no matter how much she tries to distract herself with hobbies and trying something new, it all leads to the same thing. Ayame finds herself feeling restless, lonely, and frustrated. All of a sudden she stops contacting her friends. She goes to work and gets things done without talking to people. She goes for walks while also purposely avoiding people she knows, only watching them from afar with people they've grown close to in this world like Sonico and Mobius, or people being reunited with friends from their homeworlds. This loneliness only gets worse when it's quiet and Ayame is left alone with her thoughts. She's been back for months; and the time has come when her frustrations grow to a point where her her facade of a kind and composed woman is beginning to crack... ]

A.) Genessia City - Memoria Park

[ Ayame had been visiting Memoria Park every day since she returned without fail, always stopping by the wall with the name Yuyuko Saigyouji on it. She always shows up to eat breakfast there, reading the newspaper, or just to use the name as a venting post for her anecdotes and frustrations. Lying down on a next to the wall with Yuyuko's name on it, and still clad in her combat outfit with a sword on her side, she'll likely be needed to get waken up. If not, she'll just do it herself. A jolt causes a gasp to leave her lips and pry her eyes open, looking around with watery eyes in confusion and groaning. Her hand flies to her head to nurse her headache, but also to shield her eyes from that bright sunlight from above. Muttering to herself, she struggles to look for her sunglasses that she swears is just on the ground. She mutters to herself as she finds it difficult to get up ]

Ah, damn it. Sunglasses. Ugh... Where did I put those?

[ It's on her head ]

B.) Genessia City - Burgatory

[ Burgatory is a rather new burger shop, known for opening up early and serving gourmet burgers even during breakfast hours. She was supposed to go to Cake Town to bake with Orihime, but from the looks of it she's still wearing her combat outfit from yesterday, not even bothering to come home after her shift as a Deputy Guardian. As the sun rises, Ayame can be found on the roof of Burgatory, sitting at home on top of the large B sign with some hamburgers and a bottle of bourbon beside her. Her eyes are shielded with some cheap sunglasses, with her messy bun hairstyle even messier than it should be. Her stunt causes a little commotion on the parking area. Curious people gather to watch this hungover woman continue to ignore the staff that start pleading for her to come down.

"Miss? Please, can you get down from there?" the young staff member asks, tired and pretty much done with Genessia's shenanigans. He doesn't get paid enough for this shit. ]

C.) Fayren - Marketplace

[ Clad in modern clothes in the form of a track jacket, running pants, and sneakers; Ayame stands out from the local crowd in Fayren's streets. But it was mostly because they see Ayame on a moped. Down the narrow market streets, they saw her rolling and they were hating. Currently parked outside an apothecary where the locals observe it in curiosity. Ayame feels sick as she steps out of the store, coughing and placing a hand on a wall for support while she gets her bearings with deep breathes, Ayame slowly walks to the moped, leaning against it as she takes the herbal remedy from the store and wash it down with some water. She's getting a lot of curious looks, so she looks at them in return until she notices someone with a soul/pendant, raising her water bottle at them in greeting ]

I hope I'm not ruining the rustic scenery.

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[ She's heard of this place, especially in the context of people disappearing. However, Konoka had never really made the trip until now. The marble monolith was just like the big memorials she'd seen on her world.

This time around, it wasn't just a heavy statistic... Konoka had personal things to see. Setsuna's name was surely among them. Even if Setsuna really wasn't... dead per se, she wasn't coming back, and Konoka missed her. How long would it be before Genessia let her go? Should she hold this candle, or move on for a little while?

What did that last one even mean?

Though speaking of, she wound up spying Mariko's name too, and that had its own, more complicated feelings involved. Something negative actually threatened to show up before she heard Ayame, apparently not too far away.

Her "big sister" was apparently looking for her sunglasses. ]

Ayame, they're on your head though.

[ Konoka's presence in Memoria Park left Ayame feeling a complicated mix of emotions. But mostly, it was that of frustration and shame. Having Konoka see her in such a state was a blow to her pride, even worse that she made such a silly mistake. Ayame looks at Konoka, wordlessly staring at the young woman before shielding her own eyes with the sunglasses. It took some effort to stand herself up with such a heavy-feeling head, but using the wall with Yuyuko's name for support, Ayame manages to get on her feet ]

Morning...

[ Ayame tries to act casual, dusting off her combat outfit without looking at Konoka straight in the eyes. Groaning under her breath, she clears her throat as she keeps tidying herself up ]

...What, uhm, what day is it?

Edited 2018-09-01 03:03 (UTC)

[ There's something off about Ayame. She seems a little more... distraught than normal? But she's also trying to appear casual.

Konoka can empathize though. She doesn't like showing negative emotions either. It distracted her from thinking about her love life. ]

Tuesday.

[ But she can't avoid the subject forever. And bottling things up is bad, right? Ayame would totally poke her if she was trying to hide something. ]

You have someone you really miss too?

[ Ayame nods weakly, acknowledging Konoka's answer to her question. She paces away from the wall to the nearest bench, holding on to it with both hands for support ]

I suppose. In a way.

[ She answers her vaguely with an exhausted sigh, after a few moments of silence. She turns, still holding on to the bench with one hand and looking at Yuyuko's name on the wall ]

I don't know.

You wanna talk about it?

[ Konoka asked gently. She hadn't seen Ayame like this before, but she knew even the strongest of people had their weak moments. Her teacher Negi was no exception, but Asuna had proven better at getting past his woes. Konoka at least wanted to try and help Ayame, even if it turned out that she couldn't help all that much.

Besides, Ayame already knows her story, right? ]

I don't think I can form cohesive sentences with this headache so, no. But I appreciate your concern.

[ Since Konoka is a friend and family, Ayame turns down Konoka's offer politely. She circles around the bench to sit herself down, cradling her aching head in her palms with a groan. She does want to talk about it, and also needs to talk about it, but her pride is too great that it prevents her from opening up. ]

You can--

[ Her words were cut off as she coughs loudly ]

Oh geez you are not well.

[ Konoka attempted to gently cajole Ayame to a bench or other less comfortable spot so she can at least lie down. Thinking back to how this conversation began, Konoka remembered Ayame asked what day it was... and she learned not too long ago that Ayame was a heavy drinker. Konoka sure wasn't, and her own experience with hangovers was a big reason why. ]

I dunno if this will work, but I'm gonna try to heal you... or at least ease of the symptoms.

[ If not stopped, Konoka will summon her pactio fans and gently let their power ease off Ayame's headache, if she can. Given the sheer power she's not sure how well it'll work, but better than doing nothing. ]

[ Ayame didn't feel the need for Konoka's charity, but she was brushing off Konoka too much already that she humors the young woman's attempts to help her. She frowns, letting Konoka's magic do their thing and ease her body's pains. Ayame is a powerful individual indeed, and while she has little resistance to magic, her headache subsided only slightly. It helped a lot, but her head still hurts whenever she turns it suddenly. She groans her pains away, with some color returning to her face. ]

Thanks.

[ She replied. Normally she says "thank you" instead of a lazy single-syllable version. ]

I... need to get home. Himiko must be starving...

[ Ayame stands, pushing herself up from the bench. Trying to create a portal out of thin air, only to have it fizzle out before it even manifests due to her lack of concentration. Her inability frustrated her, making Ayame snarl under her breath and sit back down on the bench in exhaustion. ]

[ Nope, she's still not well. Konoka gasped at the attempt to teleport home failing; Ayame must really be out of it and her healing was only minimally helping. She was considering her mega-heal, but given something subtle she'd seen in Ayame's attitude, that would only make things worse.

So, she decided to pull out her comm device. ]

You need a ride home. Where do you live now?

[ She thought of the house Ayame used to have back when she was around the first time, but... that wasn't around anymore. ]

I'll take you to my apartment if need be.

I live in Tokyo, remember?

[ Ayame groans, starting to stand back up and create a portal to the Attleton archway. ]

I need to go.

[ Konoka's healing made it work, so there it was like a tear in space which Ayame paces on through, coughing a bit while she reaches the other side. Konoka is free to follow her to make sure she doesn't fall face first on the ground, or she could just stay here since Ayame is stubbornly insistent in being okay. Either way works for Ayame, although she wouldn't admit it to the former ]

Oh, right!

[ She had that big picnic over there after all, though she wound up getting stone drunk and regretting it the next day. It probably made her forget that Ayame's apartment was actually there.

Perhaps it was curiosity, perhaps it was regret that she wasn't strong enough to truly cure Ayame, but she had followed behind, thinking the portal might fail again... only this time it succeeded and Konoka stumbled right after her. She had to right herself, she was here to make sure Ayame was okay, not to suddenly become a klutz and make things worse! Konoka would help Ayame to the nearest couch if she actually stumbled. ]

Whoa! Don't try to do so much at once!

[ This pretty much continued on even after Ayame and Konoka arrived at Attleton. Ayame created another portal once passed through the archway, leading to the gate to the Tokyo subarchway. Then once through that, Ayame creates a portal in the middle of the Shibuya Crossing where the subarchway opens up to, finally leading to her home in a quiet Tokyo neighborhood.

Ayame quickly drops down to a knee from exhaustion, even with Himiko's barking keeping her awake. The dog looks frustrated, biting on her bowl and throwing it on the ground demanding to be fed. Even the two cats lounging around the living room look at Ayame weird, just conserving their energy until they get to eat. ]

I know, I know... Just be quiet.

[ Ayame waves her hand at Himiko, asking the dog to stop barking at her. Ayame stands up and heads directly to the kitchen where she had prepackaged her pets' food. Looking over her shoulder seeing Konoka still around, Ayame asks: ]

Do you want anything?

[ She wound up teleporting twice. It was enough to make her feel woozy again, if only for a brief moment. The dog and the cats seemed to immediately sense their owner, but if they were bothered by Konoka's presence, they didn't show it.

Konoka might watch Ayame for a bit. ]

I guess a glass of water should be fine.

[ If Ayame had things mostly in order, she might take the bowls over to the pets, gently taking them as soon as Ayame fixed them. If she stumbled though... ]

Hey, you should relax! I can feed your pets for you.

[ Ayame nods, grabbing a mug and filling it with cool water for Konoka, straight from a filtered pitcher. Ayame places the mug down for Konoka while she gets to popping the meals into the microwave, setting the number of minutes before sighing under her breath. ]

Each container is labeled on whose food is it. Once it's done, just place them on their bowls.

[ Ayame waves her hand in the air as she heads straight for the couch. She didn't even bother to change out of her combat uniform or take her sword and shoes off. Ayame lies down and sighs as if she's been awake for a week and getting to rest was like finding an oasis in a desert. Himiko whines as she looks at her master. The dog was still hangry, but seeing Ayame in such a state worries the animal. Even the cats seem concerned, especially Sisko who hops on the couch with Ayame despite it's short munchkin cat legs. ]

Okay!

[ Konoka scrambles to pull out and then prepare the food once the microwaving is done, per Ayame's instructions. Fortunately this goes without incident, though her heart felt a little pain from seeing Ayame's concerned pets gathered around her. ]

I have your food! [ Konoka called out softly to the pets, setting the bowls down low enough so said pets can get to the food. ]

Oh, Ayame-han...

[ She takes that glass of water and drinks, only realizing how thirsty she is after it touches her throat. She drinks quite a bit before setting it aside and going over to Ayame. She sits close by. ]

[ Sisko hesitated in leaving Ayame alone, but was given the nudge in the form of gentle taps on the cat's back to assure it that it's okay, and it needs to go eat. Like a little fluffy ball, Sisko pumps it's small legs to get to its bowl and dig in along with Himiko and Hibiki. ]

If you're intending to stay here for long, you can make yourself at home.

[ Ayame peeks from under her forearm that she's using as a shield for her eyes ]

There's the television if you want to pass the time.

If that’s okay with you.

[ For now, Konoka decided to give Ayame her mental space and just chill. There will be a time to try and encourage her again, she will just have to wait for it. Konoka sinks back into the couch from the floor for a moment, but eventually she does take Ayame’s offer and turn on the TV. She sets it to a low volume and opts to watch a simple, mindless program.

If any of the pets approach her, she’ll definitely pet them or give them rubs, but otherwise is content on leaving them alone and keeping an eye on Ayame. ]

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August 28th - Downward Spiral

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