A Moment of Freedom [Open]

Posts : 56 Join date : 2016-10-06

"Tch."

The morning had already started off a sour one for the youngest of the Vaughn household. Apparently expressing a disinterest in Endymion's current economy was an unforgivable, cardinal sin--or at the very least something worth escalating into a shouting match. He'd stormed out with the excuse that he had somewhere to be, but the truth of the matter was that he just wanted to be as far from his own household as possible. It was funny, in a sad kind of way. He could hear his parents mocking him from the kitchen table.

The dull clatter of an empty soda can echoed back at him as he kicked it down the backalley, the crumpled metal eventually lodging itself among some trash bags someone had set out. He huffed at its defiance, now devoid of something to take his frustrations out upon. That left only the sound of his loose clothing as he shuffled along, hands tucked in his pockets. The quiet was annoying, but he supposed anything was better than his parents' precision stealth attacks aimed at his ego.

He came to the end of the alleyway, scowling up then down the street as he figured out where he wanted to go. He really was just wandering, and he had no clue when he was going to return home. He wasn't really sure he even wanted to go back home, but it's not like his folks wouldn't sound the alarm if he'd missed dinner. Every family friend in the neighborhood would be out hunting him down. It was like an escaped prisoner; the idea wrinkled his nose even further.

"Ah, to hell with it..." He murmured, trudging over to a bench and flopping down upon it. There was a brief moment of thought before he swung sideways, throwing his legs up and across the length of the seat to hog the entire bench. Clasping his hands behind his head as best he could in the position, he leaned back and stared up at the partly cloudy sky. Was it going to rain...? Fantastic.

Guest

The day began on a rather neutral note for Hikaru. Nothing has changed for good or bad since she and her mother went out to the Little Tokyo for dinner a couple nights ago. As the teen expected, they didn't talk or interact with each other most of the time. Sure, she brought out somethings out of her mother during the chat, but overall the woman remained distant and quiet. I guess, Hikaru really couldn't blame her. She wasn't the best conversationalist.

Currently, the dark-haired girl walked toward her next destination. She hadn't quite eaten anything besides a few snacks from the kitchen closet. And the stacked food at home was hardly fulfilling, Hikaru concluded that going out to get food at the one of the small restaurants would be better. There were a couple places on the girl's mind. As she went by, the teen hadn't even noticed another person laying on the bench when Hikaru pulled out her wallet.

'Not that much. I'll probably be able to get something okay with this.'

Guest

The gentle light from the sun trickled down on this beautiful Autumn day.The seasonal transition left a hint of chill in the air, just enough for jackets and sweaters to start making their appearances in the bustling city streets. Leaves began to litter the gutters along with the usual trash as the scenery was filled splotchy greens mottled with yellow and orange. And it was absolutely nauseating.

"Uuuuugh..." groaned Ritsuko, harsh daylight filtering in through her dark aviators. Her head pounded in tune to the passing of cars through the busy passes of Endymion, average Joes and Janes with 2.5 kids and a picket fence in the suburbs on their way to the daily grind, coffee in hand and cellphone firmly on their ear. Ritz, however, was not your average Jane. The thought sickened her. It wasn't a good way to live life, at the beck and call of some higher-paid idiot who thought he knew better than you. It was painful, but she'd rather live outside of society's lines. Sure it sucked and she had to bounce from hotel to apartment to cardboard box and back to hotel, but it was a life free of everything she was afraid of. Things like taxes and car insurance.

It was still technically evening for her, at least the end of her day. Ritz got lucky and landed a gig as a backup guitarist for some indie band called Vitriol in some dive bar named Salamander's. 12,500 yen. Almost wasn't worth the trouble. But she enjoyed playing and didn't want to go public yet. Also part of the deal was free drinks for the rest of the night, which Ritsuko began to regret ever more with her increasingly powerful hangover. The owner (Keichi...? Kenchi...? Kazuma...? Something with a K) kicked her out at around 4 A.M. and she'd been wandering the streets ever since. And by wandering the streets, actually hanging outside the convenience store making a nuisance of herself and trying to keep greasy bar food from explosively leaving her digestive system.

Aoide tugged gently at her shoulder, the strap cutting into her like a blade as a not-so-subtle reminder that she had to get her ass in gear to catch the bus home. It'd be another 25 minutes before the next one and every waking moment was another turn for her brain to bounce in her skull. Ritz lit a cigarette, one of several she'd already had that morning, as her stomach growled and heaved in protest. Nope. Not hungover, probably still drunk. She began to stride quicker to the bus stop, wobbling slightly as curly fries screamed at her to release them to the world.

Ritsuko sidled up against the bus stop, more to keep herself upright than anything else, and took a numb drag off her coffin nail.
Oh please God just end me already...
Oh good, lookie here, another pain in the neck kid who thinks the world revolves around him. Maybe other people would like to use the bench? Ritz would normally seethe in solitude and bottle her annoyance up all day, but her aching feet and last night's margaritas compelled her otherwise.
"Hey kid," the young adult rasped at the boy lain out on the bench,
"You're hogging the seat. Feel like moving anytime today?"

Posts : 56 Join date : 2016-10-06

Steven lowered his gaze from its scrutiny of the sky and its inhabitants at the sound of distant footsteps, scanning the surrounding area until he was able to catch sight of the dark-haired girl walking in his direction. He continued to watch her only to wonder if she would make that dreaded eye contact that obligated him to say something, or worse, request that he share his newfound seat. When it became apparent that her trajectory wasn't him or the bench, however, he raised a brow. It wasn't until she pulled out her wallet that he felt the urge to say something to her. Sifting through cash on a basically empty street was asking for a thief to run up out of nowhere and make off with your paycheck.

"Yo," he spoke, loud enough for his tone to carry but not enough to sound rude. "You from around here?"

Not soon after the words left his mouth he was met with the words he was initially anticipating, although its swiftness, volume, and tone suggested it clearly wasn't the girl he was questioning. Not to mention she hadn't looked at him yet.

"Wow, uh, hi." He responded simply, looking with a mockery of innocence up at the woman. At her inquiry, he stretched out an arm, bending it back to mime a glance at a watch that was not there. "Lessee... yeah, I believe there's some time at which I will probably move. Oh wait, I just did."

He then put his hand back behind his head.

"Oh look, I did it again. Man, it's just your lucky day."

He watched her then, letting the tension build until she reacted. Either way, he would eventually swing around, bringing himself to his feet, tucking his hands back into his pockets, and arcing his back in a halfhearted stretch. She looked like she needed that seat more than him anyway.

"You look like hell, by the way."

Guest

"Yea . . . yea" Hikaru answered the question absentmindedly to the unknown voice. She removed herself from her wallet and closed it, placing it back in her pocket. Looking about, the dark-haired girl realized there was a person laying on the bench. Her eyebrow arched when she noted the other teen's odd appearance. Their pale skin and reddish freckles on his face were the most notable to her sight. Has she seen him before or something? Probably not. Yet, that wasn't the only peculiar person to come around this particular spot. A rather small woman - obviously a bit drunk - walked into view.

Hikaru knew just by watching the starting interactions between the two was going to brew trouble.

Guest

Kids. Ritz loathed kids. She didn't like most people in general, but freakin' kids, man. Entitled little brats coming into their own thought they were the top of the world or something. Arrogance? Yeah, people can be arrogant at times, comes with the territory of being a person. But stupid teenagers with their stupid cocky attitude thought they knew how the world works and were just almighty enough to EXPLAIN it to you. Ritz longed for the days of corporal punishment where she could backhand one of the little twerps for a comment like that and no one would bat an eyelash. The way the world was heading, that wouldn't be too far off as long as you wore a uniform.

Dear lord the self-righteous smirk on that ginger! Her hand shook, aching to smack the smug off his immature freckled face. Her whole body shook in fact. Shaking with rage... and cold... and the alcoho- actually, they all kind of blended together. Pretty hard to distinguish them. Ritsuko's head lolled limply to the side, holding the bridge of her nose in an a futile attempt to keep her brain from leaking out of her nostrils, rebellious unkempt hair falling down her face as icy eyes glared above her sunglasses at the kid. And then finally! The kid moved over.

Ohthankgod!

Ritsuko swiftly moved into the now open seat before the plainer girl could take the opportunity, nearly falling over in the process. Aoide slunk off her shoulder a little, and Ritsuko let her sink into the seat to take the load off her aching shoulders. Her feet breathed a sigh of relief. But her stomach. Her stomach jumped and twirled and twisted as her head spun from the new elevation. In reaction Ritsuko had to catch her dipping head with hand and her shades almost ate the pavement. She took one more drag off her cigarette, more an offensive candle at this point since she was barely smoking it, and spit onto the ground.
"I feel like Hell..." she admitted in a low tone. To think after a few years of this she'd be more used to it.

Ritz clutched her guitar to make sure it was still there and spit on the ground once more. Definitely hit that one too hard. Normally she can stop as soon as she's beyond working the buttons on her phone and deal with a minor headache, but she got carried away. She blamed Kuroki or whoever the hell he was. If he wouldn't have shorted her money in exchange for drinks, she... would probably still have ended up where she was anyway. Ritz once more spit on the ground as a familiar queasiness gripped her.
"...shut up, kid. No one asked you," she prickled slightly, tone slightly melancholic, yet again spitting. Yep. That was it. Game over, the spitting confirmed it. She'd give it less than two minutes before her guts hit the floor. Puking at the bus stop with school kids, what a place to end up.

Posts : 56 Join date : 2016-10-06

Steven took a moment to revel in the reaction he got from the older woman. Naturally his quick wit had struck a chord with her--nevermind the guitar strapped over her shoulder--but knowing that he could easily diffuse it by giving her what she wanted brought a strange sort of satisfaction to him. It was amusing to him how actions and words could be so contrary, yet still have favorable results.

He raised a brow at her quiet response to his observation, standing to face her while she less-than-gracefully settled herself in. It was the weak retort that followed that caused him to give a weak, pitying chuckle, a hand finding its way to his head to scratch in confusion.

"Uh, are you sure you don't need help, or something?" he questioned, looking back at the other girl. It seemed she'd stopped, and he didn't blame her given the sort of spectacle that this was bound to become. It was only a glance, though, and before long his attention was drawn back to the delinquent-looking woman with an odd pout somewhere between disappointment and condescension.

Seriously, this was what some people chose to do with their life once they got out on their own? Give the control they just got over their lives to something--not even someone, something dumb like drugs or alcohol--else? He couldn't even begin to comprehend it.

"You sure you won't like, pass out on the bus or something and miss your stop?"

Guest

Any other day, Hikaru would just walk right out of this situation and get her food. But, the drunk woman seemed like she may need some sort of comfort. The girl couldn't leave, at least not right away until she thought there was some assurance that the woman might be alright. Knowing Hikaru, she'd be quite bad at comforting someone.

"Yea, Miss . . . You going to be alright or . . .?"

The teen doubted the newcomer cared about formality based on the way they dressed and their attitude, however the inclusion of the 'Miss' in there was simply because she didn't want to call her 'lady' or 'broad'. The girl made that mistake one too many time with people she first met. After seeing the pleasant visual of the delinquent-woman spitting on the ground, a feeling of uneasiness went through Hikaru mind. The woman seemed a little drunk from the girl's point of view, yet maybe the woman was far worse than she looked if that was possible.

'How drunk was this woman exactly?'

Guest

Nope. Not alright, not alright. It took tremendous willpower to avoid painting her boots a new shiny shade of vomit. The presence of others wasn't helping. It made her nervous, even if they were just a couple of children. She could feel their eyes boring through to her core, and she was exactly what they saw on the surface: a miserable, jaded, irresponsible adult. Well, better they see it sooner rather than later. Life wasn't fair and these were the consequences when you roll snake eyes on the Dice of Fate.

She held up a shaky hand toward the high school girl, staring at the void that was the pavement as she ineffectively tried to pull herself together. She didn't need pity and she certainly didn't want it. Ritsuko dealt with her demons by herself, no one else could possibly understand her own personal Hell. Her life was her own, her consequences were her own, and as much as she might need help at the moment the only one she could rely on was herself. Ritsuko steeled herself. If determination couldn't keep her from falling apart she'd have to rely on spite.

"*Pftup* I-I'll be-" the tipsy woman began to protest as she spit again. Aaaaaaand then her throat started feeling heavy. Certainly not, nossiree, spite wasn't about to stop what was about to happen. Her hand swiftly moved to cover her mouth, head lurching forward as she gagged slightly.
"...I'llberightback...!"
Moving with a lightning intensity not yet displayed, Ritz pushed herself from the bench seat and scampered down the street. Her arm swung out to grab her guitar strap on reflex, and a the case ground softly along the ground behind her as she sprinted toward her salvation: the trash receptacle. It was nearly thirty feet away and it was almost just enough to be too far. The young "adult" felt her insides purge as she began to cough a mere few paces away from the street's waste bin and it was a photo finish. Thinking ahead, she ripped off her aviators before slamming her head in the trash can.

Ritz coughed once, then again, and finally released the contents of her stomach unto the world. Curly fries, peanuts, wheat beer, margarita, and whatever the hell was in those shots erupted from her system in a pathetic attempt to teach her that this is not an event she wants to undergo again. Her throat burned with her aching regret. And bile. Lots of it.
Ohgodohgodohdog it went up my nose!
Ritz wiped off her face as she looked up, fresh from her purging session. She found the same eyes she felt earlier, these ones different. A suit on his way to work looking down at her with contempt scrawled across his face. The young woman wanted to crawl in a hole and die. Instead, carefully, she bent down, picked up her aviators, and began to clean them off on her shirt, all the while glaring at the man with an intense nonverbal message.
How dare you judge me.

Guest

"Hey, did that girl throw up?" The white haired boy walked to the nearby bus stop with the help of his crutch, and as he walked, he witnessed a weird scene; a woman throwing all she has into the ground, literally making it a pool of vomit, with all kind of thing possible being mixed together. He wasn't so sure if the girl had reasons to eat such an amount of trash, but he couldn't say she should eat more healthy, it would be very rude of his part. But the situation was also ironic, as the boy was carrying a small bag with medicines, so he thought it would be better to help her. "Hey, woman, use that medicine." Shouri casually threw the medicine box into the lap of the girl, thinking it would be useful to her. It was a stomach medicine for cases of indigestion, but he couldn't believe he gave his meds to a girl he didn't even met. The worst was giving it to a possible drunkyard.

Posts : 56 Join date : 2016-10-06

Spectacle indeed. The brown-haired boy tilted his head back just so, looking slightly down his nose as the woman wrestled against the inevitable. He found it strange how the only ones embarrassed about making a scene like this in public were the ones who had done it before. Usually many times before. They were the first to jump on the defensive, desperately trying to sweep their embarrassment under the rug and have everyone look away.

"I'll be fine," she tried to say, not even finishing the statement before her digestive system removed the validity of the argument with haste. His brows evened in an expression of exasperation, and he gave a snorting huff that threatened to turn into a laugh as she bolted off to the sweet salvation of the trash can.

"Yep, looks fine to me," he mused to the girl beside him, rolling his eyes and shuffling after the ailing drunk. He had nothing else better to do with his day, and this was admittedly getting somewhat entertaining. It was as he approached that he saw the other boy coming from the other direction, tossing a bag in the delinquent's direction. He gave the pale child a lazy wave, then made a small double-take as he actually took in the kid's appearance. He looked kinda sickly, but in a sort of ethereal way. Like he was already halfway a ghost. It was a nice aesthetic.

"So, uh, yeah. One hundred percent fine." he mocked, leaning into the woman's field of view. "Legitimately, go get yourself some ginger candy. It helps with upset stomachs, assuming it wasn't among the wonderful casserole you've produced for us."

Guest

Alright, this woman was clearly not going to be okay as much as she liked to claim that she was. Well, isn't this nice? Now everyone and their mother was looking at them when the vomiting commenced. All of them were either indifferent or disgusted at the display of this drunken woman's moment of vulnerability it seems. The teen turned toward another arrival to the scene when he threw a box at the woman's lap. He looked very unfamiliar and unusual to say the least. He even appeared kinda deathly and might've been new to the area, but she couldn't assume that much from just looking. I guess, the medicine was all the help the delinquent woman was getting, because red-head decided to mock her. Or maybe he was trying to help in his own unusual way.

The dark haired girl let out a light sigh, stepping a little closer to the vagabond yet respecting her boundaries by standing a few spaces away. She might understand people's apathy and discomfort for someone's suffering, but intentionally making the situation worse was something Hikaru couldn't really comprehend. It sounded like a waste of time to her. The teen looked at the woman and waited for her to act. Perhaps those meds could help cease any uneasiness settling after she just hurled out her stomach contents.

Guest

She'd jump when the medicine landed in her lap so suddenly, rolling from her knees and away onto the ground. Further looking up, Ritsuko would find herself surrounded by kids. Teasing her. Mocking her. This isn't what she wanted, a crowd. Couldn't she deal with her own problems on her own terms? Just one. Damn. Request. Please! She couldn't stand to let anyone know how weak she was. They could think whatever they wanted, she didn't care, but she couldn't let them know it was true. Her stomach ached, her head throbbed, and she felt the hole in her heart stretch and it wasn't anyone's damn business but hers.

"Hey, woman, use that medicine."

Her blurry gaze shifted around, wild hair trailing at the faces surrounding her. Her sunglasses fell further down her nose and the sun became blinding. The memories started to flood back...

"Subject number 39, please apply the bandages and continue."
*sniff* It hurts! I can't do it!"
"Subject 39, apply your bandages and keep playing."
*hic* I-I don't wanna! I hate you! I wanna suh-stop!"
"Subject is showing third pause at the two hour and forty-six minute mark. Results under average of similar pause at approximately the three hour and sixteen minute mark."
"She's become more rebellious in the past two weeks. Puberty maybe?"
"Awaaaah... *sniff* hu-hu-huuuuuu..."
"Hormone levels show minimal fluctuations but we can't rule that out. The brain is a delicate instrument. Possibly a side effect of the Pentezamin?"
"How? We've given her Pentezamin before and it hasn't changed results!"
"The brain is a delicate instrument, Vincent, she could have developed a psychological tolerance we weren't aware of."
"I w-wanna st-stop! Don't, *hic hic* ...don't make me do thi-is anymo-o-o-o-ore...!"
"Perhaps... her attunement with the symbiote? We've observed her talking to herself over the past three days, maybe she's-"
"Either way we'll continue as normal and observe, she isn't to her mental limit yet. Her brain waves haven't regressed, she's just being difficult, it's to be expected."
"Ritsuko."
"*sniff*...? Wah-No! NOOOOOOO! STOPITSTOPITDON'TTOUCHMEEEEEEEE!"
"Ritsuko! Ritsuko listen to me!"
"DON'TTOUCHME! DON'TTOUCHME GETAWAAAAAAAAAAY! AAAAAAAIIIIEEEEEE!!!"
"Ritsuko, we don't want to hurt you. Daddy only wants you to play your beautiful music, are you gonna disappoint him, Ris-chan? I want to be happy with my little Ris-chan and I want you to play your music, okay?"
"Ahi... *hic* ahiiii... You're lying, you're LYYYYIIIIIIIIIIIING!! GO AWAAAAAAAAAAY!!"
"Subject has shown unconditioned knowledge, result of dynamic learning or free radical?"
"We'll discuss that later. This trial is over, prep the sedative!"
"STAAAAAAAAHP!! NOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAIIIIIEEEEEE!!!"

It will be alright child.

"AAAAIIiieee...? *sniff*
"Write this down, damnit Vincent write this down! Subject is showing immediate decrease in distress and Theta wave activity is- Get the hell out of here, the situation's changed!"

Bind your wounds child. You will grow through this suffrage. Please, let me speak. Through your music you will be free, in time.

"...well I'll be damned..."
"Subject has responded to unknown stimuli during the presence of theta wave activity, warrants possible electrode study?"
*sniff... sniff* ...O-okay. I'm ready n-now..."
...
...*tick tick tick tick*
"...whenever you wish to continue, Subject 39."

Here knuckles began to grow white as she gripped the lid of the trash can and pulled herself to her feet, silently shaking in emotion.
*Pthup* "...don't talk down to me you rotten little bastard," seethed Ritsuko as she stood, spitting and wiping her mouth once more. "...I bet the worst thing to ever happen to you was your Daddy taking away your GameStation but trust me. It gets a lot. Worse." Ritsuko peered through her hair with an intense and hateful gaze at the ginger. His smug attitude, his self-assured stance... He was going to be soooo disappointed when Life slammed into him like a freight train.
"You're not going to remember today ever happened in a few months but Word of God you'll be standing in my shoes and then you'll understand how everyone really sees a prick like you, and how fucking good you really have it now... But you can never come back to this moment and take back your attitude or live your life again... And that's the worst thing anyone could wish to happen." Feet shaking, body trembling, hyperventilating, Ritsuko thrust her arm towards the pale schoolboy caught in the right place at the wrong time. Her hand slowly opened to reveal the medicine he attempted to offer her.
"I'm fine. Really. I don't need your help. I just need to lie down for a while."

Ritz had sobered up astoundingly quickly. Blind fury will do that on the odd occasion. While her head stung with a piercing intensity and her stomach gurgled in death throes, she no longer cared. It was masked behind a sea of numbness and defiance. This was the power of spite she wanted to rely on.

Guest

At first, he decided to hear what the girl had to say.

So he waited until it was over, before continuing what he intended to say.

"I see, but I guess stomachache is the small of your problems. To eat such an amount of trash, you should be depressed about something." Although a little scared about the situation, he caught the medicine still on the palm of her hand and slowly sighed. He didn't want to help her by pity, it is just that she reminds him of his past self, so he could only toss her a box of medicine to at least alleviate her stomachache. But you could think he was right; to eat a casserole of trash and regurgitate all that mess, she must have something wrong with her, like a depressive period or something, but Shouri himself thought it would be rude to help her directly, so he just tossed a medicine to the girl. But even if he gave her a medicine, it would help the girl with her depressive problems? The albino didn't know what do to at this point. But it was like she was really depressed about something, but if he even tried to help the girl herself, she would be very pissed. Something to do with her pride? The boy understands the woman, as he is just as worse as her; he had pity and hate from people because of his albinism, and he also got hate and pity because of his disability. It was quite ironic, he got his disability because a certain boy hated him because of his pale skin, and in return, the pity and hate he received were multiplied. The girl was very similar to him in a sense, so the boy said without malice, without looking down at her, a simply hint that could help her. "So, you ever heard of antidepressives? They are a type of medicine that might erase what is troubling you."

Posts : 56 Join date : 2016-10-06

Steven pouted when he didn't get an immediate response from the woman. She had just thrown up, he supposed, but she seemed the sort to be a defensive fireball no matter the occasion. The words came, though, predictably at first as she tried to counter his condescending behavior. "You're just a kid," "You've got it easy," blah, blah. He'd heard it before; she wasn't the first to inform him of how blissfully wonderful his life was.

What stalled him, what reached around his shield of nonchalance and lashed at the ego cowering beneath it was the idea that he would have any sort of regret for his behavior. That he would want... this life back, safe in the comforts of his own home but treated like little more than a chess piece on a board. The thought changed his stance, bringing him to his full height from his relaxed slouch. His expression, on the other hand, changed little, though there was an edge to the smirk he shot her as the pale one spoke to her.

"You go right ahead and think that. I'd love to stand in your shoes, honestly." he responded, monotony attempting to cloak the venom in his tone. "If you've got enough say in your life to make bad decisions like these..."

He paused, letting his eyes trail indicatively across the scene before him.

"...Then there's no one forcing you to live one way or another. Well, no one but yourself. I envy you in a way, though it's pretty dumb that this is how you choose to spend your time."

He thought of something then, nodding toward the woman's guitar.

"I'm guessing you play? I'd rather get addicted to that than that, honestly." he offered, gesturing to the trash can.

» Freedom... [Morning/Open]
» A Moment of 'Peace' (Open to Three)
» Fly in the Freedom (Azul Awakening)
» The Price Of Freedom [Edgar/Deshi]
» Footguards of Freedom [Fool's Facade Item]