>>35321577
The students in the band start to scatter as you explode forward into action, all but one. Her eyes are locked onto you, something familiar. You know her, know her smile and her pink hair. Make a show, draw out Sailor Moon, so you’ll give her something to rescue. Your hands stretch and flatten as the red of your arms seeps-

Pitching forward, your hands catch either side of the sink and brace your near fall. A memory…

Those girls, they suffered like you had. How much could they remember? The one in the sewer, she seemed to bounce back fairly quickly as though nothing had happened. From your vantage point earlier, the one from the building seemed to not really take it half as well.

Putting your blouse back on along with the skirt of your earlier incognito presence, you leave the warm aired washroom for the upstairs hallway of the Chiba household.

A voice carries in unsteady volume and control from the stairwell. You’re halfway down when something in you halts and your blood runs cold.

~And...maybe through it all I just wanted one kind word from her. One acknowledgement of praise. She never gave them to me...but she could admit to her...admit to Usa that she was proud of me...I needed it then...maybe I wouldn’t have pushed as hard as I did to fight alone. Maybe I wouldn’t have been so headstrong...maybe I wouldn’t have…~

Mikage is sitting on the couch with her mother, your knees bend and you ease yourself down to sit on the turning corner of the stairs. How long have they been talking? She’s starting to sound more broken up again. More things are said, and you hear that day and that night from Mikage’s perspective.

You hear how she thought she killed your father, down to the grueling details that must have been etched into her memory.

>>35321595
Your charge...your friend...your broken Princess.

Sadness and anger build in you, raw and undirected. Bile rises in the back of your throat. Mom held you the other night when you cried, here it feels like you’ll do so again.

There is a hand on your shoulder, immaterial, but carrying a balming presence. Your teacher looks at you from above and nods slowly.

Too much time has been spent in the past year in the dark. Far too much has been spent alone. Mikage came back into your life and gave you...perspective. You don’t want to be in the dark anymore. You don’t want to be alone. And you don’t want her to feel so guilty anymore.

Your father is gone...and you miss him terribly. Even if the smallest part of you resents her for not telling you for so long, you understand how much it broke her. How much your friendship means to her. How hard she took her...failure.

You’ll wait for now. You won’t cry. Mikage is crying enough, and you promised yourself to be her strength. She’ll need you soon, and you shouldn’t let her see you cry again.

Interlude End

>>35321607
Quest Start

“Thank you, girls, for your cooperation,” the stern looking woman gives your assembled group a salute, as do the assembled security force that stands behind her before she smiles lightly at your own assembled number, “And thank you, truly, for the good work you’ve done here tonight,”

Sailor Moon fidgets under the praise, blushing faintly. As she wrings her pigtails in an embarrassed fashion, the rabbit head shaped hair clips newly added to her uniform bob. They first appeared after she plunged her hands into the glowing water after the figure she claimed to have seen floating at the bottom of the pool.

“It was nothing, Captain, just doing our best as protectors of love and justice!” she laughs.

You had sensed a presence there, but it vanished quickly. So many things have vanished quickly tonight, but it paints a clear picture to you...though you’re worried. Some of the things you saw tonight and some of the things others have said don’t entirely add up, and it leaves you concerned and confused.

Luckily, your natural shy bearings and these concerns kept you relatively quiet during your collectively decidedly unofficial debriefing.

“Its getting late, Captain Osaka,” Sailor Venus chimes stepping up beside Moon, grabbing her forearm and giving the PIT officer a wry smile, “We gotta get Sailor Moon to bed or she’ll sleep through the briefing you invited us to,”

With a nod, the five of you leap into the night and make your way south, back into Juuban and your various homes.

You are Aiha Mizuno, age 13, third year junior high school student. Since you were little you’ve been able to read the surface thoughts of people around you indiscriminately, but now you have both a handle on that and you’ve made a bunch of good friends. Friends who you haven’t told about...well, you aren’t sure why you didn’t tell them about what you saw.

It was just so unbelievable that...and...well.

It’s complicated.

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>>35321616
“Hey, its not too late just yet,” Sailor Moon calls out from ahead of your formation as you leap above and over an NHK news van, “We could all go back to my house and watch a movie together!”

“Sound good. I could use a bit of unwinding after that,” Jupiter sighs.

“Can I call my mom about it,” Mars says quietly from beside you, “She has a few scrolls she wants me to learn before next weekend,”

“Anything good?” Venus casually turns in midair from her position flanked behind Moon to face Mars, landing and leaping backwards without losing step with the group.

“Maybe, a bunch of spells she collected for me to read,” she says nervously, “Now that things are heating up, she wants me prepared,”

>A movie sounds good.
>If you want, Mars, I can come with you and be a study buddy
>Actually, there’s something I noticed before...back at the studio…
>I found a few interesting things on Lurk about this Miki girl
>I...uh...know something interesting about a popular Red Eyes account on Lurk.
>Say nothing, keep quiet
>Write in

I live.
One moment, gathering caffeine.

>>35321637
I have awoken. Lets see...

They're all tempting dammit.

>A movie sounds good.
>Actually, there’s something I noticed before...back at the studio…

>>35321637
>>If you want, Mars, I can come with you and be a study buddy
Study study// also Rin tends to have good perspective.

>>35321804
Purple

>>35321637
>Actually, there’s something I noticed before...back at the studio…

Huh. I wonder what she saw.
Main thing I can think of is catching sight of Red Eyes sneaking away invisibly, possibly toward the same direction as the bathroom Miki was 'hiding' in. Though I feel glad for my standing paranoia that says use sneak even when invisible, cause you never know.

Or or she saw through Miki perhaps.

On the Lurk end, if my memory serves (and some correct me if it doesn't), we went with claiming that it was a fan account, don't know how Eclipse got involved, and made teasing claims of knowing of Eclipse that we then back off of a bit.

Also, @RedEyedBeast and @Princess_Cram had been Lurk friends for awhile before they knew who each other were.. and likely hasn't seen much activity since then. Hm.

>>35321637
>>Say nothing, keep quiet
Collate the evidence

>>35321607
I'll admit it. I teared up a bit.

>>35321637
She seems uncertain, so I'd lean toward
>Say nothing, keep quiet
or maybe
>If you want, Mars, I can come with you and be a study buddy

Have a harder time picturing her jumping on the movie suggestion without goading.

>>35321944
I'd like to know what she knows... and from her perspective it might be a good idea to warn/know more about that connection.

Red eyes still falls into the unknown and being prepared is best. Don't want the girls to think they're talking to an airhead when it's actually a goddamn monster.

>>35321637
>Movie

I'll give this a few more minutes for the vote then tally.

>>35321995
Except Aiha is kind of a fan of the Beast, or was before this Scout business broke out.

>>35322084
Ah So then she should be excited to find out more! I support my previous vote for new reasons.

Tallying and writing

Final Destination.
No comments, no greentext, no dice, no line break, no punctuation

Reply to this post with the number of your choice.

1. Study Buddies
2. Actually, I saw something
3. Say Nothing

>>35321944
Well, not counting whatever happened today, we know Aiha knows:
A fair bit about the Red Eyed Beast.
That she reached out to a Lurk friend that made out to be said beast when her school was invaded.
Eclipse claimed to be sent by a mutual friend when he arrived.
Mikage called Koyomi to help Aiha, and later admitted to the lurk account being her's, but not being the actual Beast. Did not call Eclipse, or know how he knew to come. Made teasing reference to knowing him.. I forget how we followed that up. Which episode was that?

>>35322195
1

>>35322084
well, it depends. Because, well.

Kairi was dressed as the beast, recall.

>>35322195
3

>>35322213
i can see how she might be confused

>>35322240
They never saw Kairi as the beast, only the girls in the tunnel did, and saw her shuck off the disguise while the real beast went om nom nom.

>>35322213
Nah, that was later in the sewers

>>35322195
2

>>35322195
1

....

Okay, another final destination. 4 minutes on the clock and same rules as before. We whittled the list down some, at least.

1 Study Buddies
2 Say Nothing

>>35322287
2

>>35322287
1

>>35322287
2

>>35322287

>>35322287
1

>>35322303
Forgot your thing dude.

>>35322287
2

Writing

>>35322311
>>35322321

fix'd

>>35322334
Good. Good. Shame I didn't get into the first vote. Stupid breakfast.

No biggy. I got up to use the restroom. My sense of timing is poor apparently.

Ok, studying done for today, and I am surprised the potential spoiler over on Ask for Koyomi's healing abilities isn't being discussed.

>>35322353
>breakfast
Knew I forgot something.

Finding your voice, difficult task it normally is when you are among a large group, you voice a moment of concern, and a hope for a momentarily more manageable social setting. You’d considered asking Mar’s if she would like you to come with her to be her study buddy. It would be comfortable and quiet, and you generally like being around Rin.

However your voice dies in your throat as Venus cheers while punching her fist into the air.

“YEAH! Girls movie night! This’ll be awesome! Just like the pizza party we had at your place, B-chan!” Venus points at you with excitement sparkling in her eyes.

Giving a weak shrug, you let everyone carry on with conversation around you. That small gathering had been nice.

“You had a pizza party without me?” Kanari exclaims in incredulous shock, “No fair, moon!,”

The five of you land on a rooftop as the tallest girl lays her hands on her hips and leans forward to scrutinize her best friend. Even if the action seems insulted or hostile, you can still feel the vibrant nature of their bond between them. Its similar to what you’ve felt building between all of you since this new direction in your life started.

Well, as new as you can manage. As willful as you can be in the field, you still are a bit awkward away from the action. More comfortable to observe than participate directly. You almost let yourself go a bit too far in the fight earlier, but Jupiter managed to bring you down from whatever surge of power was building within you.

>>35322512
It scared you, what you felt there. Like when you threw lightning back in the face of your would be kidnapper.

“It wasn’t like that. Mercury had just activated and Luna was going into labor. After little Diana was born we called Venus up to bring Artemis over to meet his baby kitten,”

“Wait, you knew about all this too?” Jupiter wheels over to look down at the smaller girl in shock.

“Nope, I was still in the dark then. I just brought the poppa and the pizza to make it a party. The Bunny-chans were crafty, though. Keeping me distracted so Artemis and Luna could talk without me knowing,” the small blonde nods, sagely.

“Wait, Bunny-chans?” Jupiter quirks her eyebrow, “Mikage was with you?”

You nod weakly.

“Yeah. She was the one who told me that Mercury was in trouble, she showed up on the scene after we took the bad guys down with a little help from Eclipse,” Moon nods proudly, “Its the most...I dunno, alive I’d seen Big Sis in months,”

Jupiter scrutinizes the tall pigtailed blonde.

“Was Eclipse still there when she showed up?”

“No, he was already long gone by then. He’s so mysterious...I wonder who he is or how he fits into all of this?” Moon looks up into the night sky wistfully, fingers finding purchase through the whispering hair of her pigtails.

Her go to nervous tick it seems.

“Yeah, he...wait,” Jupiter snaps her fingers and looks over to you, argh, you dislike being reminded you aren’t a fly on the wall, “How did Mikage know you were in trouble?”

Umm...

>Write in

>>35322523
>"she... she was at the meeting the first monster showed up at."
also, I want Miki to greet Koyomi with boob hugs even more now.

>>35322484
Right? Granted I paid for it with my vote. Truly a world of compromise.

>>35322523
Is this the first event at the school where she messaged the red eyes account?

>I asked for help online and... apparently Mikage got the message.

>>35322555
I thought Jupiter was asking about the events of today?

>>35322581
Jupiter is referencing how Mikage knew Aiha was in trouble the day she wound up activating as Sailor Mercury.

>>35322596
Which I think... was back when she was attacked at school with the van stuff... or am I totally off base?

>>35322596
Ok, ignore my vote then.
>>35322613
sounds right. I'll second your vote of >>35322555, and go read the archive to catch up.

"Who knows how an ex sailor knows anything?"

>>35322625
If you notice anything special give me a heads up. That was a good while ago so my memory on the subject is fuzzy.


>>35322643
Que Usagi style laugh? Oh hoho ho?

>>35322475
I'd already had concerns about the nature of her healing, that suggestion just tweaks the bar a bit further.
But remember that the lack of something being ruled out doesn't guarantee that it is a possibility.

Besides, I'd shadowrun harder regarding mental damage is that were the case..

>>35322669
More than that, anon...

Venus-chan's unconfirmed brain cancer.

>>35322669
I was just surprised about how the direction then went "oh man, Now I don't want to kill of my favorite character." I thought that Mikage's condition can be directly compared to Raven from Teen Titans's emotion splits.
>>35322686
If Koyomi's LHE can do what Usagi's can't, I will be surprised, and crying with joy.

>>35322555
And now I'm late from my food excursioning..

>>35322523
"Um, well, it turned out we knew each other.. online.. though we didn't know it until that day.."

>>35322686
Mental issues are scaring me more than cancer at this point.

>>35322728

Koyomi's empathic healing takes the burden of wounds or disease onto herself. Look at the way she acts...she'd do it in a heartbeat if she knew.

>>35322743
Her's or Mikage's?

If her being around Mikage kills Red eyes and Miki we're going to have a grown man crying.

>>35322762
Oh christ that's worse... she hangs out with Mikage and we get a Miki/Red eyes version.

Empathic healing doesn't passively cure diseases or cure emotional trauma.

It explicitly takes the wounds a target has received and transfers them to the Empathic Healer, healing the one who was wounded.

By expending two planet power, you can take a Disease or a Poison.

Its an active ability that must be activated intentionally.

>>35322555
I AWAKEN!! Sounds legit.

Also, writing.

>>35322728
I think it is like that still, just with more forceful divides between them that Mikage put up during that year and a half (we need a proper name for that arc of her life).

>>35322795
Good God. KEEP HER AWAY FROM THE SICK PEOPLE. She'll die/break by proxy.

>>35322652
Ok, so far, We got the situation by @Princess Cram messaging @Red Eyes on lurk, that's right. Still reading the thread.
>>35322762
Taking on both split personalities and incurable cancer? heck yeah.
>>35322764
Consider the following: If we go by the example of Raven, the personalities are parts of the whole that have been removed, and can be folded back into the whole. So, Miki and Red Eyes are still going to be around, since they ARE Mikage. no killing involved.
>>35322821
please define 'more forceful divides'.

>>35322821
The Dark Times?

>>35322842
remember, she has to actively use that, so I think you're getting excited over nothing. save that for when she finds out about the masks, then you can panic.

Empathic healing really is a horrible curse, isn't it.

>>35322905
Especially for someone who has the personality defining perk of Kindness.

>>35322843
>please define 'more forceful divides'.
A higher degree of separation from her and each other. Where most Raven scenarios were more straightforward 'put back together', Mikage's having to breakdown the walls she put up first, and in some cases reintegrating some divergent trains of thought as basically her alts continued to develop as people while she was pretty much shutdown.

>>35322843
Right I'm sure they can but since they've taken a life of their own to an extent who is to say they are not individuals? Miki got to meet her mommy last thread. Even if she folds back into Mikage I'll still feel that something/someone was lost. Period.

Nice to meet you mommy isn't just a, happier more vivid Mikage.

>>35322881
I'M ALWAYS OVER EXITED ABOUT EVERYTHING.

>>35322905
Seems like it.

>>35322878
The Reign of Princess No. Wonder if she'll surface.

>>35322930
You could compare it to reintegrating forks in Eclipse Phase. The longer they've been apart, the more one has seen than the other, the harder the process is.

>>35322821
>>35322878
>>35322940
The Sundering of Mikage

>>35322994
And so begins our quest to collect the sacred shards of Mikage across modern Japan.

>>35322940
>Wonder if she'll surface.
Think she was the first to fall just to have gotten into motion and emotion again.
No wasn't so much a personality as a lack of one.

>>35323008
Indeed!

>>35323009
Hmm perhaps. Maybe if the emotional wall ever breaks it will be a sort of state she falls into. A sort of blank.

>>35323009

Didn't we bring her out against Yoshi on the train ride to Venus's show?

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>>35322940
>>35322930
OK, I think that it's safe to say that the 'splinters' (tenchical term) have developed more because Mikage has forced herself stagnate and fragment. The big questions are: How much of an individual is a split personality? how seperate/different does one have to be from the promogenetor to be their own person? For a reintegration, how much of the personality is regained/how much is lost? in the vein of >>35322964 and >>35322930, I hypothesize that the more of Mikage's mental walls we take down before absorbing the personality, the more gets folded back into Mikage.
>>35323008
you may be closer to the truth than you think.
>>35323031
I would call Princess No Mikage's shut off mode: The teenage rejection of the world dialed up to 11. so, yes, a mental blank who chooses to be one.

>>35323028
Do we get a demon buddy?

>>35323066
If we get shadow clone's or something like it, we can make bodies for all our personalities. so yeah, Red Eyes.
>inb4 SIT GIRL!

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>>35323066
We did, more or less.

>>35323066
Do you need to ask this question?

Yes. She loves peaches.

>>35323064
All I can say is that while disturbing I am starting to consider Red-Eyes and Miki they're own beings. The others haven't showed anywhere near as much oomph.

Mikage appears to still have anger/love/etc without them. I cannot condone their destruction or re-assimilation at this time.

I mean turns out scholar we're just fragments. Aren't we?

>>35323127
You also condone setting things on fire.

>>35323127
So if re-integration that does not totally assimilate the individual is not found/possible, would you settle for a more... radical division? Splitting Miki, Red Eyes, and the others not just into their own minds, but their own bodies, Hence why I bring up Shadow Clones. If they really are individuals, let's just complete the process.

You people are nuts.

Miki and Red-Eyes aren't seperate people. They're just Mikage with certain elements turned up to 11.

>>35323160
him and fire senator.
>>35323127
we're just posters on a message board playing a PBP quest... as far as I know...

“I...asked for help online. Mikage turned out to be the one who got the message,” you says shyly as Mars comes up behind you and lays a hand on your shoulder.

Jupiter turns back toward Moon.

“Is she spying on us or something?” she grouses.

“No, it wasn’t like that,” you cut in defensively, “We didn’t know that we followed each other online until that day. I have a lurk account and I started live blogging what was happening. No one took it seriously except for her,”

You hold up your phone to Jupiter, and scroll back to that day. Jupiter leans over and reviews your assorted posts.

“So they were looking for the Beast at your school? Where’s her reply?”

“It was a private message. I sent her a photo from the roof of my classmates being herded into vans. She asked for a picture of me to know who she was coming to rescue,”

Moon leans in beside the thunderer.

“Hey, that’s just before Mikage called me to say you were in trouble,” she muses, “Wait...mom said she and Mikage were having an important talk before everything happened. Our house is closer to your school than my school is...how did she arrive so late?”

Jupiter’s eyes could bore holes in Moon right now. Mars continues to offer you some support by way of her calming hand. You really don’t like being the center of attention.

“Maybe she arrived first,” Jupiter rolls her eyes.

“What do you mean, Z-chan?” Venus wonders as she holds her chin in contemplation.

“I mean- Z-chan?” she casts confused eyes over to Venus.

“Moon calls you Zues all the time. So now you’re Zues-chan. Or Z-chan for short!” exclaims the vivacious younger girl.

Jupiter looks away from the younger girl in mild defeat. Brought down from her earlier bravado, she raises her hands and expresses her great concern more casually.

“What I’m trying to say, girls, is that I think Mikage is Eclipse,” Jupiter expresses to the general shock of the group.

>>35323160
Sometimes. Fire can be a good thing anon. After all, turns out forest fires are a great way to prevent them. Selective burning and the like. I'm probably not as crazy as Fire Senator.

>>35323167
Shadow Clones are a possibility but I'm not entire sure what's involved in that process or how vulnerable those are to damage/destruction.

It may be a case of having multiple personalities. They're not exactly destructive or evil in this context. We're currently working well with Mikage's "Dark Side." We eat peaches every now and again and she doesn't attempt to have some crazy ass mind war.

>>35323202
That...no. Eclipse was a man. You remember his features clearly. His radiant warmth as you took you away from that place in his arms. His voice. His red eyes.

His red eyes…

Everyone around you tenses in surprise and thought, well, almost everyone. Mar’s just moves her hand calmly to your back between your shoulders, you must look tense as she tries to help you ease into the group dynamic. She knows how much of a hard time you have with it.

If Eclipse were actually Mikage...but...you aren’t supposed to...

>”Actually” show them the private messages, show them Mikage’s handle is @Redeyedbeast
>Refute Jupiter’s ridiculous (is it ridiculous?) claim
>Rin isn’t reacting? Ask her why?
>Rin isn’t reacting? Try to probe her thoughts.
>Blush and stammer at the implications of your earlier feelings, girls can’t…
>Get a handle on yourself, stay quiet and see where Jupiter’s going with this.
>Write in

>>35323167
>>35323127
I gotta say I favor reintegration, they're clearly part of her, and conflicts between them simply more extreme examples of the normal conflicts people have within themselves.
They aren't truly separate, it is Mikage's sense of Self that is damaged and needs help coming to grips, and with the Usa situation is was damaged to a lesser degree long before.

The Shitennou coming along has helped a lot a think, being able to see herself as the Earth Princess has helped give her something of her own to hold onto and stabilize herself.

>>35323220
>Blush and stammer at the implications of your earlier feelings, girls can’t…

Oh wait!

>”Actually” show them the private messages, show them Mikage’s handle is @Redeyedbeast


Clearly it's not eclipse.

>>35323197
That's what I keep saying. apparently, extensive interactions leads people to think split personalities are individuals. Go figure.
>>35323220
>Blush and stammer at the implications of your earlier feelings, girls can’t…
making hugs even more awkward, yes plz.
and then
>”Actually” show them the private messages, show them Mikage’s handle is @Redeyedbeast
wait, my sister isn't a guy, just a vampire! whew, that was awkward.
>>35323230
Thank you anon. I too favor reintegration,
>captcha Technical Envirmin
yes, the Envirmin here is very Technical

>>35323220
>Blush and stammer at the implications of your earlier feelings, girls can’t…
>Get a handle on yourself, stay quiet and see where Jupiter’s going with this.
It's not anyone is going to hear us anyway.

>>35323220
I'm gonna need to think on this one. Hrm.

>>35323220
>Rin isn’t reacting? Ask her why?
>”Actually” show them the private messages, show them Mikage’s handle is @Redeyedbeast

>>35323266
Murderer!

>>35323328
see >>35323197. There is no murder involved. You're just butthurt over the thought of losing your character trait that you like, which you won't, so you're getting upset over nothing. Red Eyes is Mikage's anger, wrath, etc. Red Eye has even said as such, remember? now please chill and go with the crowd, ok?

Writing

>>35323220
>>35323306
>"Let's think this out..
Mikage was closer, but Koyomi was traveling as Sailor Moon, as we can see roof-hoping is way faster than just running on the street.
Besides, Eclipse said he was sent by a mutual friend, maybe someone else in my lurk list..
Mikage said she didn't call him.. Koyomi has she said anything more about him?"

>>35323378
I was joking. Sarcasm doesn't translate well to text.

However I'll vote against such things until I feel it's been proven that we're not killing sentient beings.

Not sure if you've got too much experience with the Dresden files. But something similar to this happened.

Started out as a separation but has taken on it's own life or traits becoming a spirit of intellect.

>>35323423
>>35323435
Gah, my old pattern of being a hair too late resumes!

>>35323453
Clearly it's the length of your post. That's the trouble with write ins. When you stop to type everything out and create something and everyone else goes with the pre-gens you get left in the dust. Gotta stay on top of it if you want the write in.

>>35323444
>Sarcasm doesn't translate well to text.
ya don't say.
Haven't read those Books because broke, but everyone I know recommends them. I'll take your word for the events you say, and I will try and see if the reintegration brings as much as possible... but Mikage can't stay like this forever, and we might not have the time to put something together that loses us nothing.
>TL;DR, No sacrifice, no victory, will try and minimize cost.

>>35323535

They're good b or c level novels. Modern fantasy.

If they're both just Mikage throwing her emotional dials to 11/10 in one way or another then re-integration will happen. Period. That's just a mood swing.

If they're split personalities that have taken on a life of their own... reintegration may not even be possible.

etc etc... Beating a dead horse.

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Your face heats up and you look down, hoping no one was looking directly at you to see the embarrassed blush spread across your cheeks.

“N-no,” you murmur, “E-Eclip-se can’t be Mikage. H-he had strong arms and s-sm-sme-” you shriek quietly to yourself, muffling your voice with a clasping hand over your mouth and twisting this way and that to shake the concern from your frame.

“Well, if Eclipse is a guy, then he’s a guy with some really soft breasts,” Jupiter crosses her arms and nods, “My arm got wedged between them when SHE caught me falling off the stage,”

“WAIT!” you plead, not so much against Jupiter but against the notion that your heroic crush is Koyomi’s aloof and stern big sister, “I don’t think she’s Eclipse...she said they knew each other than night, but had no idea how he heard about us being in trouble. Besides,”

You swipe at your phone to show the private message chain on your Lurk account.

“this is her Lurk Handle!” you shove your phone forward while looking away from everyone in hopes that the name of the older girl’s joke account will be enough to derail this line of questioning.

“@Redeyedbeast?” questions Venus as moon looks on wide eyed and confused.

“S-she said it was a joke account,” you explain.

>W-what about the swordswoman in red? Why aren’t we talking about her?
>Mi-Mikage can’t be the actual beast anyway, I saw…
>Mikage can’t be the Red Eyed Beast AND Eclipse. Besides, the girls rescued from the sewers said Red Eyes called Eclipse her and the swordsman’s mutual friend.
>Can...can we just drop this and go pick out a movie...I’m uncomfortable.
>Write in

>>35323608
>Mikage throwing her emotional dials to 11/10
funny you should mention that... found the Evidence I mentioned earlier, from thread 36:
>Dark side to a good little girl who decided to cut that part of her loose and free after she thought she did a very bad thing.
>And now, that good girl is on conversationally pleasant terms with her own dark side. What the hell, YOU are the dark side. Aren’t you?
>Maybe darkside isn’t the best description of what you are, you decide and bite through the straw in frustration. Its more like, you get to do the things Mikage wouldn’t because of society or how other people thought. Get to be rude, dirty, scary, and snarling like an animal and not care if people looked at you weird. Rather, you exalted in it. Hedonism, unrestrained curiosity. Maybe that’s who you were of the broken jigsaw puzzle. Maybe the pieces of anger just fell into your lap when everything got divided up.

>Lucky bitch with the short straw, you got to be sin. Envy, Wrath, Gluttony, Lu- no. You definitely aren’t the keeper of lust. That’s splintered between all of you because that pink haired dolt doesn’t know what to do with it.

Now then, Let's just all agree on the whole '11/10' angle and save debate until we find something concrete on reintegration, ok?

>>35323649
>>Can...can we just drop this and go pick out a movie...I’m uncomfortable.

>>35323649
>>Mi-Mikage can’t be the actual beast anyway, I saw…

Yes Yes! BE AWKWARD IN SOCIAL SITUATIONS!

>>35323649
>Mi-Mikage can’t be the actual beast anyway, I saw…
My sister is a Vampire, coming soon, to networks near you!

>>35323649
>>Can...can we just drop this and go pick out a movie...I’m uncomfortable.
On top of spagheeeeeettiiiiii, all covered with cheeeeeeeese~

Hey folks, extracted Mikage's chat with Aiha that First Day, for those that want a refresher:
http://pastebin.com/JCriJ3b9

>>35323727
Well she's still adorable. That's for the extract dude.

>>35323649
>Mi-Mikage can’t be the actual beast anyway, I saw…

>>35323649
>Can...can we just drop this and go pick out a movie...I’m uncomfortable.
As awkward as possible, please.

Writing

>>35323727
>~I'm not a part of that life anymore,~ you say to her softly ~but, I don't want to see anyone I care about go through it alone~
we gotta break that out with Hotaru. Also, given how smart these girls are, they will be suspicious that Mikage is the Vampire they saw before.
>>35323776
*Thanks
fixed.

IT'S ALL FALLING APART. Sadly I saw issues coming, still kick myself for missing that vote in episode 7.
>ronpaulwarnedyou.jpg

>>35323649
>Mikage can’t be the Red Eyed Beast AND Eclipse. Besides, the girls rescued from the sewers said Red Eyes called Eclipse her and the swordsman’s mutual friend.
>Can...can we just drop this and go pick out a movie...I’m uncomfortable.

I wish I knew what she saw, would make whether to vote on it easier.

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Shit, we have a tie.

Final Destination, 4 minutes on the clock. No comments, dice, line breaks, punctuation, or green text.

Just the number of your choice in a post in reply to this one.

1 Can we just drop this and go pick out a movi...I'm uncomfortable
2 Mikage can't be the beast, I saw...

>>35323842
2

>>35323842
1

>>35323842
2

>>35323842
2

>>35323814
>given how smart these girls are
they're not all as smart as Jupiter

Mikage has just been fairly sloppy. But it's understandable when you're trying to live three or four lives, keep them separate from each other and half of them don't like the other half.

>>35323842
2

>>35323842
1

>>35323842
2

>>35323872
We haven't been that sloppy.
Only wrinkle is that initial link to Aiha, which we played off reasonably. Would have preferred to avoid mention of knowing Eclipse.. but at this point I think that is working to our advantage, oddly enough.

The later chat Koyomi had with dad helped there.

>>35323872
If I've learned anything from P&P RPGS, if one person in the party knows something, the rest all know. They don't all need to piece the holes in Mikage's story to the wall, just one of them. Then, The rest will take it from there and run with it. And yes, we have been fairly sloppy, both in and out of character.

>>35323872
Mikage is sloppy but.. the girls are what? 13-15? They're not exactly brilliant at that age.

>>35323919
We've been fairly cautious overall.
Heavily so, even.

Just the initial bit of honesty after rescuing Aiha.
We really couldn't have lied too hard back then, we didn't have much skill in it. That was pretty much the encounter that set us on maxing that out in the level up at the end of that thread.

>>35323971
points made, but no deception lasts forever. Mikage was going to get made eventually, and I can think of worse times/places for that to happen than now and with Usagi.

>>35324002
Yeah Worst one I could come up with is in combat and getting knocked down/out etc.

Girls see Red-eyes/Eclipse whoever get smashed and then it turns out to be Mikage limp on the ground. That could be devastating to morale.

bottom line: lying isn't easy.

>>35324041
true. seeing Red Eyes back when she went Alcard turn into Mikage would have put some serious scars into Koyomi.

Now? Now, when Mikage boobhugs her, she'll either get embaressed about how she has a crush on her sister, or be scared that her sister is going to drink her blood, or better yet, BOTH! ah, the images....
>>35324064
and honesty is the best policy.

>>35324002
With effort, Mikage is currently capable of dragging it out. She is far better at deceoption now, has Mythic powers of such even, and access to illusions that could help with being seen in the same place/time.

We COULD do it.

There is a question of should though.

My only concern about them knowing too much might leak to their parents.
But if we can keep it at a similar level as Usagi, then it might work out.

>>35324041
I was having fun thinking that if the girls had shown up during our last fight we could have held the monster while Moon healed it.. possibly dispelling our disguise in the process.
Would have been interesting.

>>35324104
Honesty is a tool like any other. It depends on what you're trying to achieve.

>>35324104
>honesty is the best policy.
well now, i'd say that's debateable.

But I figure right now we're starting to get an appreciation for why the older Scouts were kind of into hiding in plain sight.

>>35324104
I'm kinda hoping that what Aiha saw links to Miki, and that she mentions this to Koyomi, and that Koyomi comes home and gets boob hugged and told she did good she's like 'WTFBBQ But We Thought You Were-' and then Mikage muffles her in boobhug and drags her away to find out what she knows away from mom.

>>35324132
Well, Dad knows the shadow + General business, mom knows the Eclipse side...
but if it's a question of should, I'd say get it all out if lil sis asks, hide in plane site like >>35324163 says. Mikage wouldn't lie to her younger sister, right?
>inb4 no, she would not.

>>35324135
>honesty
>tool
well, we can't all be sociopaths, now can we?

>>35324182
This. I approve of this.
>>35324191
*plain sight

>>35324191
Well we could if someone stopped voting against it...

Another amusing scenario would be managing to keep a relative lid on things until Mikage finally goes to see Rin, and Aiha ia there so she goes to leave, but Rin instead insists that Mikage talk with Aiha there to clear things up.

File: that is not ok.jpg (203 KB, 856x540)

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>>35324233
>implying sociopathic behavior is in any way healthy or helpful.

>>35324191
>well, we can't all be sociopaths, now can we?
I should hope not. Gaming the system would be so much harder if everyone else was trying to do it too.

Seriously, though. Just because we love and trust certain people is no reason to compromise our operational security by telling them things that they don't need to know.

>>35324333
>Just because we love and trust certain people is no reason to compromise our operational security by telling them things that they don't need to know.
I feel dirty for agreeing with this part.

>>35324371
but then how are we any better than Hotaru?

>>35324378
We never were, but those situations aren't the same thing at all.

>>35324378
>Telling them things they don't need to know.

Mikage needed to know Hotaru cared/loved her.

It's debatable that the scouts need to know that Mikage is Eclipse/Redeyes.

Well, the thing really is, "why we lying", and the fact of the matter is that there's a lot of reasons.

But reason one is Mikage isn't Sailor Moon. She's not some Big Damn Hero.

In some ways, it's freedom, but she's paying for it in a lot of little (and not so little) ways. Scars, for one.

“Can we even trust she was telling the truth?” Jupiter says quietly, perhaps afraid, before turning to Moon, “I mean, you’re sister is really messed up. She could be-”

“No. Mi-Mikage can’t be the actual Beast anyway. I saw…” you begin and compose yourself.

This is one of your secrets. Just as much as your ability to get impressions of other people’s thoughts or hear their surface thoughts if you concentrated hard enough, you don’t tell people about this.

“I see things...from time to time,” you explain and lower your phone, “It used to be pretty rare...but now it happens frequently. I see things other people don’t notice. Objects, creatures, shapes. Invisible things, sometimes intangible as well. I know when something I’m looking at turns invisible, and I saw the Beast become such a phantom and charge into the bathroom,”

The other girls look to you, curiously. Venus’s eyes go wide.

“I checked when you started helping the Kouki girl down the stairs. There was no one else in the bathroom. My suspicions were confirmed when that girl left so suddenly, even if she seemed earnest about hating the Red Eyed Beast,”

Everyone is silent. Moon speaks up.

“Why didn’t you tell us sooner?”

“I didn’t think it mattered...and I was scared,” you admit, “I didn’t want you thinking I was more of a freak, or that I was crazy...seeing things that aren’t there,”

Quiet reigns. Jupiter, who a second ago looked like she was going to become angry, shrinks back and looks a tad embarrassed. This lasts for a good half a minute before Rin withdraws her hand from your back and steps out to the side to grab everyone’s attention.

“I see dead people,” Mars explains, “Not all the time...only for a little while after they die. I can talk to them before they fade. It usually happens when I help mom make prayer rounds at the hospital,”

>>35324333
this guy >>35324378 has it, we are going to tell lil sis at least Eclipse, and Red Eyes. 1. to know we have her back. 2. to not have her draw bad conclusions about us. 3. to show her we love her and the whole 'never go it alone' bit.
>>35324401
which is why we just tell koyomi.

>>35324406
Exactly. The last thing Mikage want's is to be drawn into the Scout troop. It would be awkward and painful.

The secret identities allow her to maintain some dignity.

>>35324401
I'm not really in the camp with "Hotaru is devil", but there's no question the lady done fucked up.

>>35324424

Your eyes water as you take in Mar’s presence. After you shared something about yourself that you thought damning which might drive your new friends away, she backs you up with a bit of her own weirdness.

“Okay, you aren’t crazy,” Jupiter sighs, “And that Miki girl is the Red Eyed Beast. I thought there was something familiar about her while she was leaving. Anyone else have any major personal confessions?”

“I’m never full,” Moon follow with near tears in her eyes as she lurches forward and takes you and Rin into a hug you find stiffening awkward as your leader continues to ramble, “I can just eat and eat and eat and I never feel full. I’m always hungry and its weird. Where do I put it all? Other people get full, why don’t I? Am I going to pork up like my mom when I get older?”

“Sai-Sail-or M-oon!” Rin gags, “Cho-choking!”

“I meant seriously,” grouses Jupiter as she tries to pull the crying Moon off of you.

Venus stands slightly away from the group, looking down and away with a pensive expensive crossing her face. There is consideration there beyond what you expect of a girl her age as you find yourself pried free from Sailor Moon’s tearful hug. A hug that is now turned full force against the tall brunette as the pigtailed blonde wails.

Shooting a glance of thanks over to Rin, you feel lighter somehow...until the deep in thought Venus comes back into your field of vision.

“My back!” Jupiter cries out as there is a sharp cracking sound.

>Talk to Rin, about what?
>Try to probe Rin’s thoughts.
>Ask Venus what’s wrong?
>Try to probe Venus’s thoughts.
>Try to diffuse Moon’s death grip on Kanari. How?
>Write in

>>35324378
Hotaru was just being cold toward us because she was scared of her own spaghetti.

There is a certain level of information we're trying to keep under wraps to better protect everyone should the time come.

Though there is also a level were we aren't telling the new scouts to avoid spaghetti as well though, a shield against our anxiety about Scout stuff and it's easier to give reassuring advice as a mysterious stranger than as a broken girl.

>>35324456
>Ask Venus what’s wrong?

>>35324456
>>Ask Venus what’s wrong?
But quietly, while the others aren't paying attention.

>>35324424
>“I checked when you started helping the Kouki girl down the stairs. There was no one else in the bathroom. My suspicions were confirmed when that girl left so suddenly, even if she seemed earnest about hating the Red Eyed Beast,”
Well, we can't hide anything when that get's brought up. Otherwise, Koyomi and co. might think we're an enemy.
>>35324456
>Ask Venus what’s wrong?
I think we know where this is going.
>>35324466
You have excellent points... but Mikage needs to get over them eventually, and fate rarely calls on us when we're ready.

>>35324456
>>Ask Venus what’s wrong?

> “And that Miki girl is the Red Eyed Beast. I thought there was something familiar about her while she was leaving
Yeah, I'm kind of hoping we DON'T do that whole "hug Koyomi as Miki" thing. Not that I was for it in the first place: it's a personal thing and Koyomi can't keep secrets worth a damn.

>>35324456
>Ask Venus what’s wrong?

Koyomi confession. So cute. Much d'aww.

>>35324456
>>Ask Venus what’s wrong?
It would be more efficacious to just rip the thoughts from her mind, but it's honestly better for everyone if we can talk it out of her.

Mind probe is still a possibility if this fails.

>>35324466
>Hotaru was just being cold toward us because she was scared of her own spaghetti.
No, that's just how Hotaru is. She's reserved in a way that Mikage's family hasn't.

I think the expression is "still waters run deep".

>>35324501
I dunno. That plan has a lot of inertia behind it, and seeing her freak out thinking we're gonna eat her would be incredibly funny.

>>35324501
I still want to. Here's the thing, anytime lil sis sees Mikage, she's going to ask. avoiding or prolonging the answers just confirms all the worst things Koyomi will think of in the meantime.

>>35324456
Turn and give Venus our full attention, if she's going to share, we're here to listen, but we aren't going to push.

File: 1405753364458.gif (500 KB, 400x300)

500 KB GIF

Looks like you want to ask the littlest Senshi what's what. Private like.

Roll me a persuasion test. DC 20

best of 3. 1s and 20s wild. dice+1d20+6

Rolled 10 + 6 (1d20 + 6)

>>35324554
Wow. Aiha is shit at this.

Rolled 17 + 6 (1d20 + 6)

>>35324554

Rolled 18 + 16 (1d20 + 16)

>>35324554
rolling
>>35324564
not as much as you think:>>35324567

>>35324580

>Wow. Aiha is shit at this.

>>35324564
>>35324567
Oh, I don't know about that.

>>35324564
For a lvl 2 character, a +6 is good.

She has two from Training, One from charisma, and three from Empathy.

Rolled 1 + 6 (1d20 + 6)

>>35324554
>>35324580
whoops, that did not come out right. correct roll this time.

>>35324554
This gif amuses me greatly.

>>35324580

Well thanks for the roll Scholar.

>>35324580
+16

aw, maaaaan

>>35324601
well...
>>35324608
don't thank me just yet...

Rolled 14 + 6 (1d20 + 6)

>>35324554
>>35324601

Why?

>>35324601
It was fine! WHY DID YOU DO THAT!

I don't think the dice actually add the + directly into the roll anyway.

As you can see from the 1

File: 1412309867016.gif (2.03 MB, 600x600)

2.03 MB GIF

>>35324601
>Rolled 1 + 6 (1d20 + 6)
I don't have the reaction images for this

>>35324496
>You have excellent points... but Mikage needs to get over them eventually, and fate rarely calls on us when we're ready.
Indeed, I'm leaning toward a level of honest when things start to come apart.
But I'm for managing the information as best we can, keeping things quiet. Unfortunately, the parts we will have to share/admit will be uncomfortable for us on a personal level, but the higher operational security points can still be kept apart.

However, if confronted, I suggest putting certain things and ask to meet with Rin. There are things that need to be addressed, and maybe the whole team should know why Mikage wants them not to share things about her to their parents.

>>35324618
I would argue that the first one is obviously a typo and should be taken in the spirit of what the dice gave you. It's not like you rolled a d200.

>>35324624

I only count the dice as they are formatted correctly.

...I...I need a minute

>>35324601
THANKFULLY IT'S BEST OF THREE SO THIS DOESN'T COUNT.

>>35324624
regrettably, it was not.

Artems has let us off with stuff in the past, but the flip side is we have to accept rolls like this when we stuff up the rolls.

>>35324636
>>35324637
All is lost.

>>35324637
Ha ha, you fool. >>35324636

>>35324624
The dice gods are punishing me for improper rolling.... Forgive me...
>>35324637
nope. see>>35324636.

>>35324618
Just....fuck dude.

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>>35324657
You have doomed us.

>>35324654
For the record, times like now are right around when you thank the gods for being anon.

Why is Aiha so socially awkward?

No worries, people. Nobody's going to die just because Aiha couldn't get Venus to open up.

Venus was going to die anyway.

File: WHY.gif (3.04 MB, 704x464)

3.04 MB GIF

>>35324657
STOP DOING THESE THINGS. WHY. WHY WOULD YOU DO THESE THINGS. STAHP.

>>35324636
I have to admit, I can only picture Aiha failing in the manner of not managing to say anything and looking really awkward.

But if she senses certain doom- I shall call for Planet Power.

>>35324674
stop being melodramatic. We failed a persuade, is all.

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>>35324632
well, us being Eclipse, Miki, and Red Eyes are going to be a minimum, so what do you consider 'higher operational security points can still be kept apart'
>>35324663
>>35324674
>mfw doomed social roll
>>35324691
I'M SORRY MOM! I'M SORRY I COULDN'T"T PILOT THE ROBOT LIKE YOU WANTED!
>>35324699
we know that, let us have our fun.

>>35324693
↑↑↑
POWA TIEM?!?

>>35324691
That can't be good for your head.

>>35324699
Critically failed dude. That could mean she freaks out and says awful things/says nothing that's critically important etc etc...

Crit fails are fun. Just not in the ways you hope for.

>>35324736
I don't think that will help, (1d8) or is even allowed.

>>35324693
Pretty sure an additional +1d8 won't change this into a success. It ain't a thing that can happen.

>>35324756
1d6 for her. She can do it more often.

>>35324732
>so what do you consider 'higher operational security points can still be kept apart'
Same parts we're keeping separate from Mom.
Earth Heir, real level of ability.
Basically concealing that we could be a major factor..
Or do a meet with Rin and share why we'd like to keep ourself mostly secret from the older scouts.

>>35324777
can we do multiple planet power rolls?

>>35324777
Wording is butchered here. She only has a 1d6 from what I saw but she can still do it twice per day? I think it was...

Remember, this isn't a critical failure, this thing is measured in degrees of success or failure.

That said, Aiha has a perk that allows her to count as one fewer degree of failure or one high degree of success on Social Rolls with other girls.

And Did I hear a call for Planet Power? Aiha has a Surge of 1d6. You won't pass, but you can fail less.

>>35324770
>>35324756
Mitigating failure is always helpful.

>>35324813
do it

>>35324813
No planet power.

>>35324805
Ok, that all sounds good. identity disclosure followed by Rin debriefing.
>>35324813
Yes to both -1 fail level and planet power.

>>35324813
I'm for the roll.

>>35324813
I oppose.

>>35324813
No, I want Aiha's spaghetti all over the place.

Wow...a tie. I sense a theme this thread.

FINAL DESTINATION
4 MINUTES TO RESPOND
SAME RULES AS BEFORE

1 SURGE Planet Power
2 NO SURGE

>>35324945
1

>>35324945
1

>>35324945
2

>>35324945
1

>>35324945
2

>>35324945
TWO MEN ENTER! ONE MAN LEAVES!
TWO MEN ENTER! ONE MAN LEAVES!

>>35324945
1

>>35324986
five bucks on the girl with the tank.

>>35324945
2

>>35324986
Who Run Eclipse town?

>>35324945
1

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>>35325004
The guy with the Flanker, dat who.

>>35325040

While I'm a sucker for a Mig-29 that plane is clearly lacking in freedom.

Reminds me we still need to manifest a bitching shadow bike.

Rolled 6 (1d6)

Writing, and SURGE

>>35325072
Hellcycle? Hell yeah, we can agree on that.
>>35325074
YES! can we roll another one plz?

>>35325074
Good.

>>35325068
AND THAT'S HOW VENGEFUL GHOSTS ARE MADE!

Congrats, you failed with NO degrees of Failure.

>>35325088
I think in this instance it would override the previous and or isn't allowed for the same role. You'd have to check the pastebin though.

>>35325095
Well... Good.. I think.

>>35325088
...

You cannot stack Surges

>>35325095
Oh thank god.

>>35325116
This is what keeps us from using them all on our first roll of the day, yes.

>>35325114
>>35325116
oh well. Continue, Artemis. let's see how lil sis sticks her foot in her mouth this time...

>>35325068
Well, the prince may have claimed to want to be friends, but what kind of friend abandons you in a forest to get eaten by wolves. At the least he should have told someone else where she was.

>>35325146
Aiha, not sis.

>>35325170
A fair point.

>>35325201
sorry, you're right. I think I need food... BRB

>>35325170
>Told someone else where she was.

That's exactly what Mikage should have done in her incident.

However he probably didn't want to be friends he just wanted to let her down easy in hopes of hurting her less. Or.. not getting her crazy revved up and going. You've got to be pretty fucked up to think storming off into the woods is an acceptable reaction to a rejection.

>>35325222
>implying teens think clearly
coulda, woulda, shoulda.

You sidle over toward Venus-chan while Mars frantically tries to stop the tearful moon from squeezing the life out of her best friend. The pig tailed blonde whines about her pigtails being literal in regards to her appetite, and the kind of names she’d get called when the inevitable catches up to her and she gets fat. Boys will think she’s ugly and she’ll never get to go on a super nice dates where she gets taken out for good food.

Then she seems to realize her problem is recursive and doubles down on her existential crisis.

Venus is broken from her musings at your approach.

“B-Chan?” she looks up into your uncertain eyes and…

And you can’t find the words. You want to ask her what’s wrong but you can’t. For some reason you feel so embarrassed that only a squeak escapes your throat.

NO, something burns within you and you feel your power rise in your throat. The same power that rocketed you from your runners start toward your school when you first transformed into Sailor Mercury. It grants you resolve.

“Venus, are you...okay?” you ask plainly and fumble with what you mean.

Her expression changes instantly to that warm and happy smile she seem to carry all the time, only because of your passively supernatural empathy do you notice the momentary fear strike across her surface.

“I’m fine. That was super brave of you to admit to that,” she says with earnest sugar and sparkles, “I think its cool you have a special power. I wish I had a special power too- wait. I have finger lasers! HAVING SPECIAL POWERS IS AWESOME!”

Venus gives you a large and telegraphed thumbs up. Its...cartoonish...and she’s intense. She’s actively trying to distract you from something.

>Let it go. Help Jupiter, calm moon’s fears, how?
>Press the issue, what do you say to Venus, if you go about this the wrong way...
>You’re a bit worried, maybe take a peek into her thoughts.
>Let it go, wait for Rin to finish saving Jupiter.
>Write in

>>35325249
>Press the issue, what do you say to Venus, if you go about this the wrong way...
Don't let that planet power go to waste. Get her to say it.

>>35325249
>Let it go, wait for Rin to finish saving Jupiter.
"Ok, but if there is anything...we're here for you."

>>35325249
>Press the issue, what do you say to Venus, if you go about this the wrong way

I'm only smothering you because I care.

>>35325249
>You’re a bit worried, maybe take a peek into her thoughts.

>>35325299
seconding this.

>>35325249
"Hey, um.. we're here if you want to talk.. ok?"

>>35325249
>>You’re a bit worried, maybe take a peek into her thoughts.
Look, she had to know this sort of thing would happen when she started hanging out with wizards and psychics.

>>35325249
>>Let it go. Help Jupiter, calm moon’s fears, how?
Don't immediately invade their privacy after telling them your power.

>>35325414
Verbally invading privacy proves or at least alludes that you are not doing it mentally.

Tallying

>>35325299
sounds better than anything I could come up with.

Pressing the issue.

Okay.

dice+1d20+6 vs DC d20

With your Spagetti-tastic provided words.

Best of 3

1s and 20s

You know the drill

>>35325249
"i know you're trying to distract me from something.

If you don't want to tell me, you don't have to, but you have my number if you want to talk, right?"

Rolled 12 + 6 (1d20 + 6)

>>35325575
Here we go.

Rolled 20 + 6 (1d20 + 6)

>>35325575

Rolled 11 + 6 (1d20 + 6)

>>35325575

Rolled 4 + 6 (1d20 + 6)

>>35325575
rolling
>>35325598
never mind, we won.

>>35325598
I don't know what's worse, the fact that I think that getting to reroll a check we already failed is lame or the fact that my reroll nat 20'd it.

>>35325607
Never get cocky, you coulda rolled a 1.

Rolled 13 + 6 (1d20 + 6)

>>35325598
Good Job you.

>>35325627
hey, how many times have YOU rolled a one when the party needed, huh?

>>35325626
By RAW in d20 retries on diplomacy tests are optional. Under these circumstances, that you eliminated all degrees of failure, I ruled that you could attempt again.

Had you gotten 1 degree, I would have increased the DC for any attempted retries.

2 would have prevented you from getting a retry flat out.

>>35325676
Huh. So that Surge actually was a good idea.

Writing

>>35325703
re-rolls. Take 'em, that's what they're there for.

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>>35325659
At least 3 times I've hit ones that I recall.
First incident was particularly embarrassing.

>>35325785
Not sure Mikage will go full Sailor uniform again. But I'd be down for the batman aspects of it.

Rolled 10 + 1 (1d20 + 1)

Rolling for someone, DC 15

>>35325745
I have difficulty thinking of social combat as a time when it matters. My instinct is to save our limited surges for times when we could bleed.

>>35325808
And so Koyomi breaks Jupiter's back with a devastating hug.

>>35325785
see? Don't be harsh on people who roll ones, because the dice may desert you when you most need them... great outfit BTW. If Mikage ever gets back into the magical Girl swing of things, unlikely as it is, she'd have an outfit like that.
>>35325814
You haven't been keeping up with your military literature my flaming friend. What wins wars: information. and guess what we just got with that 20?

>>35325856
A hug? I hope it's a hug. Oh... or a shocking secret!

>>35325814
Think one of the thing I've enjoyed about this quest is that we are far more likely to use Surge for social situations and hold onto them in combat.

>>35325798
>Not sure Mikage will go full Sailor uniform again.
Not if we can avoid it.

It does have a tendency to sneak back in now and again in dreams and things.

>>35325856
>guess what we just got with that 20?
Tears and heartbreak.

>>35325893
>dreams

You mean nightmares?

>>35325814
of course, these aren't our surges...

>>35325903
There's a distinction?

>>35325871
That too. Hugs and information. That's what.
>>35325899
for us? not really. Koyomi on the other hand...

>>35325833
You could have prevented this.

>>35325913
Whoever we control is who we are. Those surges belong to us.

>>35325929
I could have prevented a lot of things actually.

>>35325921
For everyone and everyone.

>>35325933
I agree with that statement only when Mikage. I feel like playing the character as I'd like her to act rather than how I think she would act when not as the main is disruptive.

If I had voted to metagame it away from Mikage I'd have chosen very different options.

>>35325929
Oh please, Healing Escalation'll fix that righ tup.
>>35325933
No, I thought characters had a SURGE pool.
>>35325942
and messed up other things, but, then again, CAN'T the same be said for us all?

>>35325967
>Everything and everyone
fixed
Also, there IS a solution to that, we just have to find it... and ask our selves what price we are willing to pay for it.

>>35325983
Well, yes. The surges come from a pool that is attached to the character. If we weren't Aiha right now, her surge pool would not be our surges. But we are, they are, and we shouldn't feel bad about using them.

>>35325969
Well... I'd feel worse about getting meta on Venus if she wasn't passively telegraphing that there's something to know.

>>35326012
Until then, tears and heartbreak.

>>35326039
It's not meta it's showing concern for a teammate and a friend.

>>35326039
Fortunately Aiha is the most insightful of the scouts, as far as I'm aware. Harder to hide telegraphing from her.

>>35326057
true, but you made it sound like there was no hope. In a Sailor Moon game.

>>35326073
Nah, just answering the question of what we are receiving with that 20.
We aren't receiving hope or solutions yet.

>>35326073
If there was no hope there would be nothing to crush or cripple.

>>35326059
That's why Aiha believes she's doing it, yes. I'm pretty sure most of us have less pure motives.

>>35326073
From the beginning there was only ending... Nah, I can't say that with a straight face here. With the time gate around it's not even remotely true.

Maybe its because you could feel her worry, or her hurt. Maybe its because you know that momentary glimmer of loneliness and long kept secrets behind her eyes. They sparkle now with intent, but there is something else there. She’s a child, but you know she runs deeper than her age and you won’t let her so casually distract you.

“Venus, if there’s ever anything you want to talk about...you know we’re here,” you croak out.

She regards you with a certain dubiousness as her expression falls from her plastered enthusiasm. Little cracks forming across the front she seems so intent to put up.

“Its not that I mean to smother you or anything...but I’m worried,” she knows you saw something.

She knows she must have let her guard down at some point.

Her eyes linger on the group as Mars physically presses moon away from Jupiter with one hand as the other girl catches her breath. Moon surges forward and topples over the younger senshi in red and white and they’re jumbled on the tarmac of the roof.

“This is a secret,” Venus says with a certain solemnity, “okay,”

“...okay,” you reply with some trepidation.

“Promise,” she hisses as hard as she can while maintaining a whisper.

“I...I promise,”

>>35326099
true. What good is happy feelings to a story if there isn't hardship to make them worthwhile?
>>35326098
but there are hugs and information.

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>>35326121
Oh no.
Secret information..

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>>35326121
She turns to look up at you with weathered and pained eyes. They’re older than they should be for someone her age. Her expression is neutral of emotions and she seems...tired.

“I’m sick,” she says simply, “I’ve been sick a lot for the past few years. Every time we think I’m better...think I’m in remission...I get sick again,”

Regarding the girl, you process her words, remission is a term usually used for…

“Are you in remission now?” you ask cautiously.

“No. I’ve got a new round of treatments starting during the week,” she admits.

“Is it…”

“Tumor. Up here,” she sighs and taps at her temple before she resumes her usual casually happy expression, “Come on, lets go help them up before this gets anymore out of hand,”

Venus appears as though she is about to bound forward toward the mess as Jupiter is now trying to lift and untangle the two girls. Apparently the ribbons on the back of Moon’s skirt have become caught up in Mars’s hair.

You’ve grown a bit pale at Venus’s words. Juvenile cancer is a serious issue. She didn’t say what kind it was beyond in her head. Is that why she said she didn’t want to use your telepathy as a communication relay during fights?

“Silly bunny-chan,” Venus says wistfully.

>Let her go
>Hug her...just for a second.
>Say something encouraging. What?
>Head over beside her to sort this mess out.
>Write in

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>>35326121

>>35326121
Here's my sound-track for this quest today:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-RTw2Mgd3U
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-O3cZ3M4hAo

>>35326189
>Hug her...just for a second.

>>35326189
>>Hug her... while dragging her over to solve this mess.

>>35326189
>>Hug her...just for a second.

For no reason
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A-EgsuGOnh0

>>35326189
>Hug her...just for a second.
see, hugs!

>>35326189
>Hug her...just for a second.
This seems like the correct measure. Moderation is key.

Also, if her cancer can be transmitted by psychic contact, that would be horrifying.

>>35326241
I doubt transmitted by psychic contact but, aggravated by it seems more likely.

>>35326252
Considering that psychics are almost ubiquitous in this setting, that's only a little better.

>>35326189
Weak knees.
Aiha is smart enough to know how serious that is.

Hug her... just for a second.
Whiper ask if they've talked to the other Scouts.. maybe magic..
Trail off, release.

>>35326241
We already know that Koyomi can take someone's disease into her through empathetic healing.

Also, just looked up juvenile cancer...
Artemis, how long exactly it been since this Venus was diagnosed?

>>35326189
>>Hug her...just for a second.

>>35326288
I seem to recall reading that Venus hasn't been seeing Doctor Usagi for at least a year or more.

>>35326241
>Also, if her cancer can be transmitted by psychic contact, that would be horrifying.
very interesting, though, since it would point to an extra-terrestrial origin, which would help explain why terrestrial treatments are ineffective.

But more likely it's just worry that it could interfere with the treatment.

>>35326194
I'd been listening to
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tmO5LP-9vlY
a lot, but it doesn't feel as appropriate anymore.

>>35326284
And even that has few options, all of them with high prices.
>>35326308
Venus said a few years... currently the magic number is five years. I now get why Venus's mother feels the way she does. I understand her desperation... I just hope Usa can still travel to her timeline...

>>35326329
I dunno about extraterrestrial, but if she's got psychic cancer, that could explain it as well. Either of these theories might not bode well for miracle crystal cures, though.

>>35326410
The evidence so far, based on quest interludes and the Q&A sessions, says Usagi can't do it. I'm hoping that Usa can get access to Crystal Tokyo's magic/science stuff and take Venus there for treatment. If not even Crystal Tokyo can help... the alternative is an impossible choice... Does Moon live, or Venus...

>>35326355
Here's a couple of more from me.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hD9L9ATug_8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FGoxmrMUY1k

>>35326358
>>35326308
Forget the exact years, but it has been a bit now, she moved to the US and was having secret treatment there and her mom has been avoiding talking to the others about it.