[Last Time, on Battle High: Karasu was forced into harnessing a hidden power by Max, who had his soul stolen for his trouble. The soul in question was traded to the devil Tulpa in exchange for Kairi's missing soul, which Isaac restored to Kairi's body. Meanwhile, Hope defeated Elinor with the help of her massive sword and a bit of baseball technique, but Mariah lost to a massively cheesy defensive attack from Roxy.] [Hope and Mariah have returned to their room after the disappointing end to the fight, and shortly afterwards, Ao-Lang, Kairi, Isaac, and Karasu enter.] [Reunion Battle... FIGHT!] * Isaac floats thru the wall and looks for Hope and Mariah. ~Where are you?o/~ ~ * Ao-Lang opens the door and walks in. "We're home!" * Hope yawns and looks up, then jumps. "Woah. What the hell?" All of us. Yeah, welcome back. I think you got some 'splanin' to do. * Ao-Lang goes and flops onto the couch Hope isn't occupying. * Kairi makes his way on in, still looking kinda confused, but mostly just... there. Must still be trying to process all the memories Isaac loaned to him. "... hey, Hope." ^^; * "... oh. Hi." The door to her bedroom opens, and Mariah steps out into the common room. She looks... tired, mostly. Deep tired. * Isaac floats forward. ~S'plainin'? 'bout what?~ ^_^ * Karasu stands near the wall and folds his arms. * Mariah starts glancing around, visibly waking up. "... uh, guys? What happened?" Soul swappage. K.. Kairi?! Okay, now you got some SERIOUS splaini' to do. * Isaac sees Mariah and floats up to her. ~Yeah. I'm nice and ect-plasticy now.~ More-or-less, as far as I know. And... er. Well, y'see, a funny thing happened on the way to slumberland... * Hope hops up and pokes Kairi to see if it's really real him. In the flesh. And my clothes. Actually, Kai, you can keep 'em. They're probably all stretched out now. * Kairi eeps slightly. "Hey, easy." ^^; ... um, thanks? * Mariah turns to Isaac. "... okay. So, uh, you're a ghost, and Kairi's himself again, and... uh... * Ao-Lang grins. "Don't mention it. No, really. Don't." .. Well. This is one helluva situation. year old. He's wearing a red T-shirt and blue jeans * Hope rubs the back of her head. "Man, things never get slow. How come you're back? And come come Isaac is all ghosty?" I won't, trust me. * Kairi is trying not to blush. Note the 'trying' part. Well, it looks like Isaac happened into my body after whoever took me out... well, took me out. And some guy came across my soul and they got it back and... gah, it's still confusing. * Ao-Lang jumps and glares at Isaac. "Outta my head!" * Isaac 'stands' on the floor. He's about four feet, eight inches and looks to be the age of a young 12 year-old. His skin's a little pale, but otherwise he doesn't have any other significant features. He's got brown hair and brown eyes, except for the photo-eye effect which is still in place. This is just... wow. Lots of spirit stuff. I wonder how they did it... ... maybe I should go check with Ken's team. * Isaac 's eyes flash red. * Hope eyes Karasu. "I'm not hearin' any explain'." ... and I really need to change. Are my clothes still in my room? * Isaac rolls his eyes. ~I'll tell ya Hope. Just calm down, okay? And yes, they're still in your room.~ ~Do you want the abridged version, or the full version?~ * Kairi wastes little time in getting his ass into his room... flinches, then keeps skedaddling, slamming the door closed. * Ao-Lang stretches and gets to her feet. "Gonna get a change of clothes. Blood stains aren't exactly the statement I wanna make." She heads into her and Mariah's room and shuts the door. * Isaac looks at Kairi. ~Ya think someone's never had someone talk to their mind before...~ * Karasu nods to Hope. "It's not up to me to explain." Well, someone better start explainin'. ~Or you'll do what? You can't really hurt me, ya know.~ * Isaac floats upsidedown. I'll force ya to listen to me singin'. A fate worse then death. ~You just might be right...~ * There's alot of bumping around, an "Ow!" and a bit of polite cursing, but Kai finally comes back out in his seemingly-trademark overalls. "Muuuuuch better. I can't see how girls wear stuff like that." =/ Well, uh, I *think* I know what happened, but... * Ao-Lang yells from inside the room, "Some of us are built for it, dumbass!" * Mariah takes a seat on available furniture. "This is so weird. ... anybody remember which room Ken's team was in?" * Isaac 's eyes flash red. ~What, the jeans were guys jeans, and you were wearing a sweatshirt.~ ~I still want to know how Karasu got a deal with creepy green-eyed boy.~ ... hey, I'm not a dumbass. -_- I dunno. You'd have to ask the creepy guy. Right now... I don't care. I'm back, I'm here and... uh. This kinda raises a question. Just one? I got a list. * Kairi points to himself. "Did I kinda forfeit my leader spot by vanishing?" ^^; * Ao-Lang re-emerges, wearing fresh clothes. She hops over the back of the couch and sits back down. Yeah? Uh. Guess it's up ta the team. I've been doin' it in your absence. * Karasu shrugs. ~I don't know. How'd you decide leader before?~ We voted. Yep. ~We could vote again.~ S'not a bad idea. But I don't know Kairi... at all, really. Except that he doesn't like my taste in clothes and he wants to fight me. I kinda wanna fight everyone, but that's just me. Aw, who doesn't? I don't. * Ao-Lang snickers. ... but still, what do we do? Vote again, just make a decision? ~I'd like to fight you too, but that's kinda hard to do.~ * Hope grins at Karasu. "Yeah, but you're strange and angsty." I donno. Just make a decision. Do you wanna be leader, Kai? Let's vote for it then. Unless ya wanna duel me Kai. That'd be fun too. Of course! I don't like to give up on anything I start... or we could duel, yeah! * Ao-Lang nods sagely and turns to Isaac. "See, violence is the solution to all the world's problems." ~I'll have to keep that in mind when I pay Mr. ' * Hope looks for a can of FixMeUp Cola. ~I'll have to keep that in mind when I pay Mr. 'Bush' a visit~ * Ao-Lang blinks. "Bush?" * As usual, there are a significant number of bottles present in a handy cabinet in Kairi's room. ~Yeah, President Bush of the US.~ ~You need a ref? I'm sure I can tell when one of you are down.~ * Kairi snickers. "Feel free to help out, Isaac." ~Sure, if you really want me to.~ ^_^ * Hope grabs one and chugs, a disgusted look on her face. She wipes her mouth and coughs. "Stuff never gets any better." So, Kai, you up for a duel? * Isaac looks around for a notebook & pencil, and upon finding it floats over and tries to pick them up. He fails miserably. ~... Oh yeah.~ * Ao-Lang walks over and picks up the notebook and pencil. * Kairi gives Hope a thumbs-up. "Always." * Isaac floats alongside Ao-Lang. ~Actually, let me try something. Mind putting that down?~ * Hope grins and points Kairi at the training room. "Ladies first. ^_^" ... after you then, Hope. ^^; * Ao-Lang looks at Isaac, then shrugs and puts 'em down. A duel? ... hey, whatever works, I guess... * Ao-Lang blinks at Hope, then cracks up. Aww. And I was so hoping you'd fall for it. ~Never tried this before, but it always works in the movies, right?~ * Hope heads into the room, grabbing her very big sword along the way. Seems to me that if Kairi had entered first, that would mean Hope was not a lady. Did she ever say she was? * Isaac closes his eyes and concentrates on the book and pencil. The items start floating up on their own. He opens his eyes. ~Whoo, it works!~ * Kairi smiles, then trots on in as well, busy pulling his bo out from his overalls. "Hope I'm not too rusty..." * Ao-Lang blinks. "Hey, cool. C'mon, don't wanna miss the show." She heads into the room. ~Now why didn't I think of this sooner...~ He floats into the room, the pencil and notebook trailing him. I suppose not. * Karasu follows into the room. Why not? * Isaac hmmms... ~So, who's facing who first? Should we have Ao-Lang fight Kairi because they already have a wager on their battle?~ * Hope grins and bows to Kai. "Good luck." * Isaac starts sketching. ~Or you two can go, yeah, that works.~ * Ao-Lang snickers. * Kairi returns the bow. "Same to you!" That said, he gives his bo a few whirls and strikes a stance. ~Ready?~ * Isaac looks up. You betcha, Casper the Friendly Ref. * Kairi nods sharply. ~Fight!~ * Isaac floats above the ring with the notepad, sketching something all the while. * Mariah follows the others into the room, obviously a little distracted and paying more attention to Isaac than anybody who's going to fight. (OOC: apologies if I'm quiet. It's the lag again. ^^;) * Isaac continues sketching from various angles. ~You guys can go any time today.~ Hope... prepare yourself! * Kairi wastes little time in attempting to overhand-smash Hope with his bo, letting out a hearty kiai in the process. * Isaac licks his teeth. ~Heh, I'm gonna have to make some sculptures of you guys to make this place look better. Nothing fancy, mind you, but maybe something as a legacy?~ ~... gosh. That'd be neat...~ * Karasu shrugs. "Don't particularly care." * Ao-Lang blinks. "A sculpture of me? Why not." ~Ya think? I'd need to get a good pair of hands though... it's still pretty hard to do this levatation stuff. And wouldn't it be an inspiration to the next freshman class to have a bishi statuete in their room?~ * Isaac smiles evilly. * Hope is smacked with the bo and grunts in pain, but she doesn't let that stop her. She takes advantage of the close range to smack Kai with her blade, yelling "MEGA HIT" at the same time. Man, and with Karasu still wandering around... that'd be kinda wild! I don't know about that. * Ao-Lang laughs. ~Too much brood for one mind to handle!~ You're free to help out if you want. ~Spread the brood! Spread the angst!~ ~We don't hate the world enough yet!~ I don't hate the world. If I did, it wouldn't exist anymore. * Mariah just shakes her head, frowning a little. * Isaac smirks. ~Yeah, sure it wouldn't.~ * Kairi lets out a rather surprised yelp, then spins the *hell* out of the way before he ends up a greasy stain on the mat. "... yeesh..." He doesn't strike, although he takes a moment to inhale, wind picking up around him a bit. Do you want me to prove it? Remember what happened to the last person who did. * Ao-Lang watches the fight carefully. ~Nope, actually. I don't.~ I didn't think so. ~I was kinda, ya know... Unconcious.~ Hold still! * Hope goes for the baseball bat technique again. It seems to work really well for her! * Isaac twirls the pencil a little, then continues sketching. ~Com'on, you can do better than that. If I'm gonna do anything with these, give me something *good*!~ ... well, okay... * Kairi snaps out of his semi-trance long enough to put his bo in the way of the strike, although the impact rocks him nice and firm, complete with teeth-click. "... you're strong, Hope." Yer not so bad yourself. ... but I'd like to think I'm stronger! ~Enough of the talking, let's get back to the punching!~ Now that's cozy. ~Isn't it Ao?~ We'll see, Captain Coma. Yeah. I'm tellin' ya, Isaac, they're made for each other. ~They're so *cute* together.~ Captain Coma! She's givin' him a pet name already! Way up there with Honey Bear. ~They kinda are...~ ~Or Dumpling Head?~ I'm comin' for you after this Ao. * Kairi spins his bo about, then lashes out with one wind-spiral-coated end. "White SPIRAL!" Without even missing a beat or waiting to see if it connects, he turns and thrusts the other end of the bo at Hope, generating the same effect. "DOUBLE!" ~Kinda nothing, they *are*.~ Sure thing, Hope! Oop, don't let him divide your attention! Man. I need to pick up some staff tricks from him... ~Hey, I could teach you a thing or two about sonic attacks if you're willing to listen. (Sherloc Holmes ripoff) It's all elementary, my dear Watson!~ * Hope takes the first blow head on, grunting in pain as it smacks in to her, but as Kairi moves for the second blow, she ducks below it and brings her zanbatou up, slashing him directly. Well, some more sonic wouldn't hurt, either... * Mariah thinks for a moment. "... and I need to find a counterattack for when I'm in The One is Many." * Kairi has a second to even notice the attack before the slash sends him, quite literally, flipping out of control. He smashes back to earth chest-first, but somehow manages to get back on his feet without leaving himself too open... granted, he looks like that HURT. ... ow. Long as we're on the subject, Mariah, you should probably figure out ways to really combine those elemental attacks. Yeah, Hope's doing a number on him. * Hope winces in pain from the spiral attack. "I'd say the same ta you. Now get READY." * Isaac looks at Kairi, then at Hope. ~I'm thinking Hope's gonna win. Do you give Kairi, or should we finish it?~ * Hope rushes Kairi and slashes once again.. and slashes over and over and over. "FLURRY.. OF.. BLOWS!" I... will not... yield! I do... it'd help to not have to worry so much about the element... Why bother asking? ~I can help you with the element. It's not like I expected him to, I just gave him the opportunity.~ ~That'd help. ... and I don't think it's cheating. You're still on our team, right?~ ~If I'm not, I'm an environmental factor that cannot be controlled.~ ~Therefore, I'd be part of the playing field... kinda like the refs in American Football.~ * Kairi does a downright amazing job of weaving through the blows that he can, and parrying aside those that he can't. "... my last chance... the strongest! White CLIMAAAAAAAAAX!" He dives in and begins to lash out with his bo at breakneck speed. So we're supposed to accidently injure you, then? I think we should use him instead of the ball. ~Um, there's one thing about that that you're forgetting... You *can't* hurt me.~ * Ao-Lang grins suddenly at Isaac. "Says you." * Karasu nods. "That's not a very safe assumption to make." ~Maybe, maybe not. But I haven't been proven wrong yet.~ * Hope swings at Kairi, who's exaustion must have made him tired. "Batter UP! MEGA HIT!" ~Pretty much, I'm about as dead as dead can get. Unless you're some sort of exorcist, in which case I'm taking a nice, LONG, trip away from you guys.~ * Isaac turns his attention to Hope and Kairi. If I got an excorcist, it wouldn't be for you. * Kairi finds himself on the bad end of Hope's swing, and then finds himself becoming quite friendly with the training room wall... and then the floor. "... gn." ~Still, I don't want to take any chances...~ * Isaac floats down to Kairi, touching him on the shoulder. * Hope runs over to Kairi. "You okay? Sorry, didn't mean ta hitcha THAT hard." Yeah. Shoulda hit harder. I think he's still conscious. * Kairi doesn't look all that terribly conscious, but he manages a head-bob. * Isaac retracts his hand as soon as he touches Kai. ~He's fine... just beat up and in a *lot* of pain.~ * Ao-Lang hops to her feet and walks out to get some magic healing juice. ... hey, probably shouldn't knock him out *all* the way. We want him okay... * Hope grins. "Nice fight, Captain Coma. Not bad for someone who's been sleepin' for so long." * Isaac starts looking over Kai's body for any broken bones/ribs/stuff like that. * Ao-Lang walks back in, semi-quoting, "He's alive. He'll be okay." She walks over to Kairi and dangles the potion in front of his face. Can you drink this yourself, or do I need to shove it down your throat? ~Shove it!~ * Kairi looks up and makes a frown. "... yer a saint." All teeth-gritting aside, he reaches for it on his own. He doesn't get up, though. * Karasu shoves his hands in his pockets. .. Man, the two of them are scary. * Ao-Lang just grins. "Or a demon." * Hope stands up and watches Kai to make sure he doesn't suddenly fall apart or anything. ... please? * Mariah nods. "... I think it's just a weird day for everyone." * Ao-Lang uncorks the bottle and hands it to Kairi. * Isaac nods to himself. ~Well, that settles it. Hope, you're the new captian.~ That's an understatement. * Kairi nurses at the nasty stuff like a babe at his mother's teet... mainly because it makes everything *BETTER*. "... *gah*, I can breathe again..." The old-new captain... or whatever. You could breathe before. The fact that you were speaking is testament to this fact. Ain't that right? ~Yup.~ Sorry 'bout that C.C. I could, but it hurt. Alot. * Kairi finishes the bottle off, then stands, rubbing at his chest. "... good fight, Hope. Didn't mean to make it one-sided or anything..." ~Well, I have some good sketches of Hope kicking ass... Hey, when's class?~ One-sided? I didn't see no one sided fight. * Hope winces. "You hit me real good." So did you. I guess you do deserve the spot. Congrats. ^_^ * Kairi offers Hope his hand. See, now's the part where Kairi judo-throws Hope... did I say that? * Hope shakes his hand. ~If you didn't you certinly thought it.~ * Hope grins at Kairi. "Try it and I'll deck ya." * Ao-Lang checks the time. You did. And I won't toss her... she won fair and square, and I respect that. Doesn't mean I won't try again later in the term... After me, Cap'n Coma. .... oh yeah! I do hafta beat you, don't I? ^_^ Bring it on, Cap'n Coma. ^_^ Although I think Ao wants a piece of you. ~Don't I ever get a turn?~ ^^; ... when *is* class? We have time, right? ~I hope so.~ Not much. * Ao-Lang goes back to the main room and starts gathering her books. * Karasu shrugs. * Class is in about 4.25 minutes. Better get a move on. ... uh. Isaac, well... I don't quite know *how* you get another turn, unless you jump in someone's body or something... and class. Man, I forgot about class! o_o * Karasu goes to gather his things. "Time flies." ~True.~ * Kairi busts ass in an attention to get his books. Yeah, the class thing, where you get your grades. Eep! Aw damn. * Mariah hustles out (well, pseudo-hustles, anyway) to pick up her backpack and staff. * Hope runs and grabs her books. "Cmon! Let's move!" * Mariah runs. It's obvious she's not entirely comfortable running, but hey... * Ao-Lang moves! She doesn't want to be late for class. * Isaac floats to class along with you crazy late people. * Kairi gets to boogying like he's out of time... which he just might be. * The halls are unusually empty this close to class start time, and the pounding of footsteps echoes crazily off the walls of the stairwell as you rush up them. * Isaac just floats thru the floors/steps. ~Ya know, this was something I missed about being a ghost.~ * Mariah, in the lead, is just yanking open the room door when your first professor for today walks around the corner. It's the bad lady! .oO{FasterfasterfasterMUSTNOTBELATEyeargh} * Hope zooms! * Mariah tries not to eep and attempts to find a seat and sit down *fast.* * Hope jumps into her seat, fast. * Karasu heads in and finds a seat somewhere. * Ao-Lang goes straight for her seat, easily avoiding other students and supplies. ~She's pissed at you guys...~ * Kairi dives, tucks and rolls into a seat. Big surprise. Man, what a way to start my return to reality. -_- * Isaac floats into the classroom and lies down on nothing above the students. * Sallah glowers evilly at you all. "You were technically not late. Barely. See to it that you're earlier next time." * Ao-Lang smiles prettily at her and nods. * Kairi nods sheepishly. o_o * Sallah's eyes unfocus a bit and her unnerving gaze settles on Isaac. "You. Shade. Who is your Shaman?" * Isaac looks at her. ~Shaman? What'cha talking about?~ * Mariah winces and nods. * Hope gulps. * Ao-Lang 's smile fades the moment Sallah looks away from her. Shaman. Whose spirit are you? Who lets you borrow their body? * Hope looks at Kairi. ... er. W-well, he did kinda borrow my body for a while... ma'am... miss... lady ma'am, sir... * Kairi kinda melts into his chair as he speaks. ~Um, no-one, really, I mean... um...~ * Karasu watches disinterestedly. If you aid any but your Shaman on my tests, I'll have you banished from the school, I swear it. * Ao-Lang raises her hand. Uh.. he kinda doesn't have one. Issa long story. ~Who said I'd aid anyone on the tests? Studying, yes, tests?~ Yeah, what if he just tutors? * Kairi continues to look really spooked by Sallah. I couldn't possibly care less about what you do outside of my classes. If I catch you cheating on my tests, though, there will be hell to pay. Don't you help anyone but your Shaman. ~Sure, if ya say so. You don't mind if I sit-in, right?~ I cannot object to your mere presence in my classes. Now shut up and let me teach. .oO{Scary.} * Ao-Lang snorts. * Isaac smiles ~But I never said a word.~ * The rest of the students in your class, meanwhile, are wondering what the hell Sallah is talking about, but none of them dares say anything. * Sallah picks up a chalk stub and bounces it off Isaac's forehead. It stings. "You know what I mean, Shade." Yo, hey. His name is Isaac. * Isaac rubs his head. ~First time that happened. And please, call me Isaac. Now, for your lecture?~ * Sallah ignores Isaac and Hope and begins writing out the next assignment on the board. * Several hours of energy sapping classes later, Sallah finally releases you from the horror that is Sex Education. * Ao-Lang finishes scribbling the assignments down in a notebook as she waits for the horde of freshman to get out of class. * Isaac twirls a pencil in mid-air as people file out of the room. * Kairi finds his mind full of information he DID NOT WANT TO KNOW, and just resigns himself to his fate... and his homework. * Mariah hmms as she finishes writing the homework down. * People vacate the room quickly, even your hallmates, aside from Greg, who waits for you guys. * Hope slumps. "Why can't it all be fighting?" It is fighting. Well, sometimes we *have* to go to school. * Ao-Lang looks up, sees people left, and snaps her notebook shut. She gets to her feet and lazily gathers her supplies. ~You have to learn stuff too. Granted, not *that* stuff, but stuff.~ * Karasu stands up and doesn't say anything. Well... I'll manage. But so much homework... * Isaac floats along, the pencil still twirling. ~Relax. I'll help you guys thru it.~ Maybe I'll help you with it. Can't have ya draggin' us down. It's not good, but... we'll be okay. * Ao-Lang nods at Isaac with a grin, then walks out. ... Ao's strange. -_- * Isaac waves at Greg. ~Hi Greg!~ ~Nah, she's just normal, like me. You're strange.~ * Greg walks alongside Ao. "So, what the heck was the evil teacher talking about?" * Hope walks out and waves at Greg. "Man.. this is nuts." Everyone here is strange. (Notice, the pencil is still floating and twirling as you're walking.) ... hey! I'm not strange, Issac. I'm... um... er... * Kairi sighs, shoulder slumping. "Bah, alright, I'm strange, too." She used fancy words to say you insert tab A into slot B. I think she does it so we never really understand, and thus can't concieve children. Not like you need a class to do that. ~That's a good boy.~ ~I think he's talking about me Ao.~ * Karasu heads out. * Mariah keeps walking. "Would we be here if we weren't strange? I mean... kids in my old school couldn't do this stuff!" And who's the teek? Oh, you? You're old news. * Ao-Lang blinks at Greg. "Teek?" Telekinetic. You know, moving objects with your mind. ~That'd be me.~ * Greg does not appear to have heard anything. * Isaac waves his hand in front of Greg's face. * Isaac 's eyes flash red. * Greg does not appear to have seen anything. Ah. Isaac. The spirit- er, shade, whatever, that old and ugly was talkin' to. You can't see him? Isaac, I don't think he can see you. ~Aw man!~ He's here Greg. Guess ya just can't see 'em. Can you materialize, or something? ~If I could, believe me, I would.~ Maybe if you wished real hard and clicked your heels together three times! ~He can't hear me either.~ * Kairi rolls his eyes. I can't see anything but you guys. Though your captain's looking more like himself than he has lately. * Ao-Lang pauses, then frowns faintly. "Yeah. He's back to his old self." Long story. And I'm kinda not captain anymore; Hope is. ^^; Yep! We had a good fight. Interesting. * Isaac frowns. So really, who's the teek? As usual. Teek? Yeah, I got pasted... and it's Isaac. Look, guys, should I tell him about it? Yeah, go ahead. Dunno if he'll believe you. ~I hope you do. I sure can't.~ Why not? ~I think he met me earlier anyways... when we went out on the town.~ Go ahead... * Isaac curls up in a ball and starts rocking back and forth in mid-air. Well, y'see... my soul kinda got yanked out of my body, ans Isaac was the one who was in me... er, this body, for a while before they got me back in. * Ao-Lang keeps walking, looking more and more eager to get back to their room. Honestly, this is my first day being 'alive' again in about a week or so. ^^; So... you mean that wasn't just a sorta multiple personality gag? Naw. Nope. * Mariah keeps walking, staring up at the ceiling as she ponders stuff. * Karasu keeps walking too, not doing much else in particular. * Kairi keeps up, occasionally looking Isaac's way. So you've got a ghost hanging around, huh? And he's like a poltergeist? * Isaac gets out of his position and quickly catches up to the rest of you. * Isaac unties Greg's shoe in response to that. Like that, yeah. More or less. I guess so. But he's a nice guy. * Greg trips and falls flat on his face. Sort of... Gah! * Isaac grins. As ya can see, he has a "sense of humor" too. Not mucha one. And that was him, apparently. Isaac, dirty pool. =/ * Ao-Lang looks down at the face-in-the-floor student and smirks. "I think he just wanted to make his point." * Greg spins around into a sitting position and reties his shoelace. ~Hey, I gotta have some fun. And a little recoginition to him that I'm here.~ He already recognized you bein' here, you know. ~Still, a little proof is a good idea.~ * Isaac looks down at Greg. * Isaac 's eyes flash red briefly. So, what the heck was the Bad Witch of the Classroom and the shaman thing? * Karasu shrugs. * Isaac pulls out a notebook and a pencil and starts writing... I have absolutely no clue... She saw him... and she got mean. She usually does... She's nuts. Gotta wonder how she didn't overload from stress and explode. She's scary. -_- Yeah. Powerful, too. I bet. Man, it seems like everyone else here's strong already. =/ * Hope punches Kairi on the arm lightly. "Yer no slouch yourself." They *are* teachers and upperclassmen and stuff... I know, it's just kinda overwhelming at times. ^^; * Clinton comes running up, a piece of paper clutched in her hand, waving wildly. "Heeeeeeeeeey!" What the heck happened to you guys this morning? * Isaac writes on the paper: "No hard feelings Greg." * Hope stares at the incoming girl. "Whatcha mean?" * Ao-Lang waves at Clinton. "Fighting and crazy stuff." Oh, hi, Clint! ... what do you mean? * Isaac looks back. ~Hey, it's Clinton.~ ... oh, hi! ^^; * Isaac 's eyes briefly flash red. Er... no hard feelings, Isaac? *** Yu-Mei has left IRC * Clinton slides to a stop. "What happened to you guys? You can't have lost badly enough to drop to ninth place!" * Isaac writes: "That's me. Too bad I can't 'talk' to you anymore." -- ninth place?! * Hope looks at the paper. "The hell? I didn't think we lost THAT badly." We won two fights. What? Ninth place? Hey! * Clinton is right. You guys have dropped to ninth place. * Ao-Lang grabs the paper and looks. That's not possible. * Karasu looks too. "I wouldn't think so, either." What the hell is goin' on? But... but we were fighting the top team, and we... we would have done it, if we hadn't... * Mariah grimaces and stares at the floor. ... I'm sorry, guys... ~... That does it. I'm going to have a *word* with whoever runs the statistics.~ ... ninth? * Hope frowns. "It's NOT your fault Mariah." * Ao-Lang looks at Hope. "How'd we do in that, anyway? Went the full five?" * Kairi frowns a bit. Okay, ALOT. We were up against the top team. ... And I had her! We went the full five. * Ao-Lang folds her arms and scowls. * Hope cracks her fists. "I betcha they had something to do with this." It would seem probable. There's no way you guys could fall that far. But I... I did it *again*... I didn't think it was possible to drop that far! What _happened?_ Mariah, stop it. It's nobody's fault... okay? Either someone fucked with the scores or... * Hope looks at Karasu. Karasu... * Kairi pats Mariah on the shoulder. "So relax. Please." Hm? * Mariah wavers and ends up leaning on the nearest wall. "... but..." What exactly did you go and do while Me'n Mariah were fightin'? * Isaac looks at Karasu. ~Okay, this has gone far enough. I want to know what's going on in your head.~ Isn't it obvious? I got Kai's soul back. How? No buts, Mariah. * Hope looks at Karasu, her face blank. ... I think I need to go back to the room. I suppose. Yeah. * Ao-Lang goes back to walking. Karasu. I wanna know what happened. * Ao-Lang looks back. "In the room, Hope." * Isaac puts the notebook and pencil back to wherever he found them. ~You took Max's soul. Maybe *that* would drop us some ranks, right?~ * Kairi glances over at Karasu for a moment. "If you feel you gotta... go ahead, alright? We'll catch up with ya. I'd prefer you stay, though." ---WH-WHAT?! * Ao-Lang rolls her eyes. "Oh, ruin the suspense, Isaac." You.. WHAT? * Karasu shrugs. "I never said I wouldn't." * Kairi *turns* on Karasu. "Wait a second!" * Hope turns around and DECKS Karasu. * Clinton moves over to stand beside Mariah. "Are you okay?" * Ao-Lang darts, in, grabbing Hope by one arm and yanking her back. "Knock it off!" * Karasu takes the punch and rounds on Hope his face a mask of rage, but just for a second. Perhaps I made a mistake. Kai, how would you like to go back into a coma? * Mariah shudders just a little at the mention of what precisely Karasu did, but it's like a drop in the ocean at this point. "... it's like the first time again -- I made a bad choice, I was stupid, I lost *bad*..." ... Karasu, while I appreciate what you've done for me, that was too great of a price to pay! No one's soul should be used like a damned baseball card, to trade whenever! You BASTARD. Yer no better then he is! I can't believe you. ~Guys, GUYS! Stop the yelling!~ Shut up! ... that still doesn't make this right. And you probably damaged our reputation in the process. * Clinton reaches out hesitantly and gives Mariah a hug. * Hope shakes with rage. "Y.. you.. Karasu, why?" You... wow, Noreen was almost right! You're a _soul_ stealer, not a body stealer! * Ao-Lang glares at Greg. "Yeah, cool, huh?" * Mariah is hugged. She's starting to tear up. "... I'm sorry... I wanted to win, I wanted it so bad, and I..." * Karasu removes his shades and glares at Kai. "I suppose I ought to have left you where you were." ...I'm really not sure. I'm more impressed by the fact that Noreen was nearly correct. * Isaac looks into Karasu's eyes. There might've been another way. Who has the soul? Sometimes wanting something isn't enough. You'll get better. Yer a group of collective geniuses, you know that? The thing with Kairi was temporary. The thing with Max will be, too. * Kairi glares back, looking uncharacteristically upset. "... but still, what's done is done. But I want a promise out of you, Karasu." He *wanted* Karasu to do it. It's his own damn fault. Sorry you got your body back, Kai. I hope so... I, I just hope that I didn't do so badly that we dropped all that way... * Ao-Lang turns and stalks down the hall. * Hope growls. "Fine. I'll go find 'em myself." * Hope storms back to the room. There's no telling why they dropped you guys. Just losing can't be that bad. Didn't you go UP in ranking after losing badly to that same team? * Isaac looks away. ~Tell you what, guys. If you *really* want Max's soul back, give me to Tulpa, okay? I'm sure I won't mind being a pawn in his game, after all, I'm just a pawn in everyone's game now.~ * Karasu calls after Hope. "Good luck! When he threatens to kill you like he did Ao-Lang, I won't bother to save you." * Mariah sniffles. "I don't remember... we might have, but... I just don't *get* it..." * Isaac floats off thru the wall. ~Bunch of damn morons. Don't know a thing about strategy.~ * Karasu shrugs at Isaac. "I did my part. Do whatever yuou want now." He heads off in the opposite direction. No, Isaac. You stay with us---damnitall.... Karasu... if you ever deal with souls again and I know about it, I promise you that I'll have words with you. * Kairi just kinda stews in place for a second, then shakes his head, turning back to Mariah. "... lovely day, today, isn't it?" ... yeah. Really. Look... we'll get thought this. It's just the news getting to us. ... I guess so, I just... I don't want to let you guys down anymore! Mariah, lemme be honest with you; you man lose again. But whatcha do after that is what makes you... you fought your hardest, right? * Clinton nods emphatically. "Yeah. As long as you did your best, that's what matters." * Mariah sniffles again. "I tried my hardest, but... I guess I just have to get better; I don't want to be the weak one anymore... (Note: combat values perceived by angsting 14-year-old may not be 100% accurate.) Get better, Mariah. I really need to get better myself... I don't wanna drag behind, either. Trying's only half the battle. * Mariah raises one hand to wipe at her eyes. "... maybe we should spar together, for practice. I bet there's stuff we could both learn." I'll beat you up until you're good enough to take anything! * Kairi nods. "There's always something we can learn from one another... or you can learn from him, too." ^^ Well... no reason I couldn't do both; it'd help... I'll help too, if you want. Nothing like Earth to build stamina. And I can get Marcie and Kento to help, too. Once you can survive three or four Hard Rock Crushers, you can take pretty much anything. And I can show you the strength of the winds... although I'm kinda working on it, myself. ^^; ... I could use some Air training... and Earth, Earth never hurts... The secret is to train. If you just lost a battle, you should train to get better. If you just won a battle, you should _still_ train to get better. * Mariah nodsnods. "Haven't been training nearly enough. I need to fix that." You could join the student duels, too. Yeah... and I'm really behind, doo, so I gotta train... maybe I'll stick with you, Mariah. Besides, you use a staff... might know a few tricks I don't. ^^ ... yeah. I've kinda been meaning to do that... * Mariah manages a smile. "We can trade tricks." C'mon, we've got all afternoon, all night, AND tomorrow morning. Let's grab some people and have a little fun. Have you guys fought on the mountainside yet? ... no, although I have a feeling that involves falling and pain. ^^; Oh, it's worse than that. Not only are you fighting your opponent and the slope, the mountain itself fights you. Remember your first walk up? I was sweating so much. It was awful. I was wearing this pink sweatshirt and boy did I ever regret it! Oh, *man.* ... what the hey, I might as well... * Kairi nods. "I do have to try that." * Kairi eyes Clinton for a moment. * Clinton eyes Kairi right back, her eyes shining with challenge, daring Kairi to make an issue of the pink. I'm sure it was a very nice sweatshirt. Did it wash out alright? ^^; * Mariah ... generally avoids the eyes. She appears to be willing to overlook the whole "pink sweatshirt" issue. * Kairi backs down, wisely. It'll never be the same, really. But I've got another, so it's okay. ^_^ Ah, right. ... anyway! Er, shall we? Let's... Yeah. * Clinton nods, still keeping his arm around Mariah's shoulders. [Reunion Fight... Draw?]