Kazuki
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You Can't Take Me
The Creed
Posts: 883
Trainer Class:
Player Name: Himura Atsushi
OOC Username: Sleepy
Arena Points: 113
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Post by Kazuki on Mar 8, 2023 1:10:43 GMT 9
“You’re kind of a prissy bitch, aren’t you?” Kazuki chuckles, seeing how Verai cleans himself up as if trying to wipe away his touch entirely. Insufferable. He’s never going to stop annoying this guy.
“And that’s the second strike. Language!” Mom tuts, heaping more food onto their plates. “One more and you’re out, mister.”
Kazuki can only roll his eyes, shoving a sandwich into his mouth before he can be tempted to rebuke. He wishes he could leave.
<Litten?> Sprigatito asks, jumping a little when he feels something bump him, only to relax when he realizes it’s just his friend. <I want a snack too!> he shakes his body to try and shrug the curtain off him, and even with Litten’s chewy aid, the thing doesn’t come off.
Just as he’s about to resign himself to life as a living curtain, he hears heavy footsteps and is lifted into the air. <Ah, hey! What gives?> he wiggles his stubby legs, unaccustomed to being carried. Whatever complaints he has are gone once he can dunk his head into his food bowl. He begins stuffing his face as if the world is ending.
“Thank you for feeding the kittens, dear,” Mom smiles, giving Kazuki a look as if saying ‘take notes’. She stands. “Now come over here and finish your food! While you’re both eating, I’ll grab your presents.” She sounds positively giddy as she says it, walking from the table down to the hallway and heading into her bedroom.
Kazuki continues chewing, glancing away from the direction she disappeared to. “... This isn’t that bad, actually."
A distant gasp. Mom’s voice echoes throughout the house: “MY ROOM!”
He swallows. “But it needs more salt.”
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Kazuki
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You Can't Take Me
The Creed
Posts: 883
Trainer Class:
Player Name: Himura Atsushi
OOC Username: Sleepy
Arena Points: 113
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Post by Kazuki on Mar 8, 2023 0:21:22 GMT 9
Whether they approved of his demand didn’t really matter. He stands and waits, ears filling with the combined sound of rumbling skies and the nidoran’s frantic attempt to break through, the sheen of the barrier fading with each passing second.
The trainer releases a new pokemon. A small chick creature that Kazuki doesn’t recognize.
And then the shattering.
The nidoran fall into brief chaos, crashing and piling on top of each other as they fail their charge. But a few from the back do slip through, riding inertia to charge for the biggest opponent in the room.
Toxic spikes extend, a horn glinting inches away from the man’s leg—
And is sent flying.
“Stay back,” Kazuki hisses, not to the nidoran, but to his travel partner. He’s positioned a little closer to where the barrier broke, drawing their attention. His foot collides with the underside of the rabbit-sized creature and kicks to send it crashing into the thick of its pack. The nidoran’s cries grow louder, outraged as he starts fending them off.
Thank fuck at least his legs work, but stomping out a rat plague has never been efficient, and he doesn’t like the look of those spikes all over the top of their bodies. He has to aim carefully for their bellies and it’s costing him speed. They swarm, moving together as one, and pressure the intruders to move closer to the entrance.
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Kazuki
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You Can't Take Me
The Creed
Posts: 883
Trainer Class:
Player Name: Himura Atsushi
OOC Username: Sleepy
Arena Points: 113
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Post by Kazuki on Mar 7, 2023 2:51:13 GMT 9
Sprigatito stood, his legs shaking, as he faced down one of the many Patrat still swarming the tower. The rodent gazes at him with its striking eyes, red dartboards that dare him to shoot.
He can’t look over his shoulder, but he knows his trainer is watching impatiently. He had been given simple instructions this time: Grab it with your teeth.
He stares at the rat the same size as he is, and wonders if he can even fit it between his jaws.
A sharp whistle finally gets him to move, a little yelp as he bounces off his feet and launches forwards. He and the Patrat collide, his eyes squeezed shut as he snaps his jaws down for a Bite.
There is some flailing. He keeps at it, the image of his blunder in the Tower of Worms clear in his head, until the Patrat has gone down. He unlatches, having apparently sunk his teeth in its side.
His eyes widen and he looks back, tail high and trembling with excitement.
Kazuki doesn’t smile, but he does seem mildly impressed. “So you are a cat, after all. Good.”
When they move onward, Sprigatito has a big spring to his step, a little rust on his tongue, and a lot of stars in his eyes. Hooray, first blood!
Prompt 15. [Tower]k5OT|lNo1-50 1-50
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Kazuki
•
You Can't Take Me
The Creed
Posts: 883
Trainer Class:
Player Name: Himura Atsushi
OOC Username: Sleepy
Arena Points: 113
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Post by Kazuki on Mar 7, 2023 2:16:22 GMT 9
Her clear exasperation amuses him. He rests his chin on his arms where they’re folded on the dock, watching her as a student on the verge of falling asleep watches their lecturer.
“Really? Never could have guessed,” he articulates his words slowly, brows raising. There is no hiding his accent, but his grasp of English is better than average, or so he’s been told by people in his life. He really only took to it once he began traveling and competing internationally. (The way certain foreigners reacted to his butchered sentences had spurred him.)
He does find the bit about Hydance useful. “Unconventional is one thing. Who’s Blarney?” The name initially gave him the impression of an old seafaring type.
With his settings the way they are, he doesn’t hear Benihana’s words, only incoherent burbles. Sprigatito, however, blinks at her with large pink eyes. <I’m okay!> He mewls. <I want to catch you! Um. That’s what you meant by baited, right?> Worried she couldn’t hear him at this height, he tries to nudge forward, only to backtrack once his perch moves.
“All right.” The fish around Kazuki didn’t appear to be obtainable. It’s possible the only way to nab one (at least to the size that rainbow girl is reeling) is to do this the old-fashioned way. “I’ll join you.”
He pushes down on his arms, pulling himself out of the water. The rickety dock underneath creaks and cracks, the old wood holding up its platform crusted with moss and worn by the elements. Kazuki lifts one leg out of the water to rest his knee on the edge of the dock, preparing to hoist his weight onto the platform.
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Kazuki
•
You Can't Take Me
The Creed
Posts: 883
Trainer Class:
Player Name: Himura Atsushi
OOC Username: Sleepy
Arena Points: 113
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Post by Kazuki on Mar 6, 2023 21:51:07 GMT 9
The nidoran collide with the barrier. They hiss and screech, clawing against the iridescent shield. The rain roars behind their backs, its distant lightning now a rumble beside their eardrums, more resounding than the enraged pack’s choir.
The doe-eyed trainer gives him a pointed stare, expectant—blaming him, no doubt. He can’t find it in himself to feel guilty.
Kazuki’s gaze moves from them to the sentient pinecone acting as their only shield. It moves further past that, back to the nidoran, to the glinting claws that rip against the translucent barrier as if it were chalkboard.
He thinks of a little pest whose armor amounts to little more than green plush toy fluff.
He clicks his tongue.
“If you want me to help,” he says, meeting the trainer’s eyes, his hand painted red as it clutches his shoulder, “get rid of the barrier.”
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Kazuki
•
You Can't Take Me
The Creed
Posts: 883
Trainer Class:
Player Name: Himura Atsushi
OOC Username: Sleepy
Arena Points: 113
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Post by Kazuki on Mar 6, 2023 19:36:33 GMT 9
He doesn’t know how she managed to enrage him. It was amusing at first, how the NPC generated an entirely new backstory for him. It made him wonder what factored into it, if it was wholly up to chance, or if they applied something from real life. He leaned on the former considering its propensity for angst.
But there was a point when the cuteness wore off. By the time she held his hand as if he were some misunderstood child, his body had already begun to move.
A grip stops him.
It snaps him out of it. The marinara dribbles down his wrist to trace across the palm clamped around his pulse. His eyes slide to look at Verai, snarl twitching a moment, before gradually unfurling back to its usual smarmy line.
“Someone’s touchy,” he says, unrolling the tension from his shoulders. He makes no effort to shake his hand out of the grip. “If you wanted to hold my hand, you could have just asked.”
Mom looks up when the topic switches, her own smile genuine. “I’m glad you two are getting along,” she chuckles, quirking a brow. “But you really shouldn’t play with your food!”
“I’ll have another.” Kazuki, now pacified, lets go of the ruined sandwich, dropping it back onto his plate with a splat.
The sound of pattering footsteps alerts the diners to the commotion in the hallway.
Sprigatito huffs, sprinting to catch up to Litten. Adrenaline pumps in his veins, with just a hint of guilt since he had ruined their tug-of-war. He likes playing with Litten. They’re both the same size, but she’s strong and determined, and so full of energy! He has to work twice as hard to keep up.
That would be a lot easier if he could see.
<Wait for me! Wait for m-OW!> he yelps, crashing into the hallway wall. He hears Litten bolt ahead and scrambles to follow, feeling a hundred times heavier but still hellbent on staying with his friend.
“The fuck is going on over there?” Kazuki blinks as Verai’s pest comes barreling through, loud as usual with her cat sounds, and his own is—a curtain.
Sprigatito mewls pitifully, wandering in circles with the Ducklett-patterned curtain still draped over his head. <Litten? Where are you?>
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Kazuki
•
You Can't Take Me
The Creed
Posts: 883
Trainer Class:
Player Name: Himura Atsushi
OOC Username: Sleepy
Arena Points: 113
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Post by Kazuki on Mar 4, 2023 0:12:00 GMT 9
He misses. The white-haired trainer’s flailing allow him to escape his grasp, and as Kazuki is recovering, his palms frost-coated, the guy announces his departure, apparently having found an egg.
He can only raise a brow, wondering if he had lost his mind. That thing was a pile of snow with a ribbon tied around it.
A soft meow calls for him. Sprigatito is by his side, his mouth tugging a bright red ribbon behind a round pile of snow.
He picks it up with the impulse to hurl it like a snowball at the retreating trainer, but it’s incredibly heavy—and warm.
“… Maybe an omelet?” He wonders aloud. Sprigatito, not knowing the insinuation, meows his assent—he'd love to eat!
It is fortunate, then, that the egg cracks open before he can step into the kitchen of the trainer’s lodge.
“Shit!” The warmth of life it had been emitting bursts tenfold, nearly singing his fingerprints. There’s a moment of frenzy as the ball of light bounces from one hand to the other, before finally settling, leaving him with a pile of wet fur clinging to his cracking palms.
It’s a monkey. The red hair on top of its head is a pompadour looking vaguely like a flame, or an ice cream, or a pile of filth. It gazes at him with large black eyes, before its attention is caught by Sprigatito kicking a fuss on the floor.
The trainer sitting by the lodge’s communal fireplace chuckles, their lap occupied by an egg they’re carefully warming. “That’s an early hatcher. Congrats!”
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Kazuki
•
You Can't Take Me
The Creed
Posts: 883
Trainer Class:
Player Name: Himura Atsushi
OOC Username: Sleepy
Arena Points: 113
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Post by Kazuki on Mar 3, 2023 18:10:43 GMT 9
So that thing was hers, and it was named Benihana. Kazuki didn’t find this strange; the flowers did come in yellow.
But he has to contend with the dragon claim. “That is a glorified pool noodle,” he deadpans, seeing its bright yellow scales and cartoonish eyes. Somehow, he found it apt for her. Like the pokemon was the multicolored girl’s mascot.
As the girl reels in her catch, he finally gets close enough to the dock. The fish she’s found doesn’t seem too impressive, though he does like how sharp it is despite being tiny.
“Girlfriends?” He asks, because he doesn’t read. “I figured it was just a normal fishing competition.” How disturbing.
He hoists himself up to rest his arms on the old dock, the crumbling wood creaking with effort under his weight. The bottom half of his body remains in the water. “Is that what people do these days?” He smirks at her. “Try to reel in dates.”
Sprigatito on his shoulder has redirected his attention to Benihana, laser-focused. Admittedly it was because he felt envious of the dragon’s cool name, but he was also practicing. He figured if he stayed really still, she’d come close enough for him to catch her like a real hunter. He has his paw ready just in case.
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Kazuki
•
You Can't Take Me
The Creed
Posts: 883
Trainer Class:
Player Name: Himura Atsushi
OOC Username: Sleepy
Arena Points: 113
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Post by Kazuki on Mar 3, 2023 17:12:36 GMT 9
Something he said landed. He’s not sure which, but it earns him a tight grip around his jaw, fingers digging into bone, and despite being locked out of talking, Kazuki grins.
Whatever Verai was about to hit him with, whether words or a fist, is stopped by the kitten antics.
He watches the man go, still snickering to himself as he rubs his jaw. 'Fucker's got a grip.' The kittens were busy among themselves, so he follows his metaphorical leash and stalks after Verai, allowing Mom to greet him as he enters the kitchen.
Sprigatito tenses at Litten’s yowling, his small fangs clenching the end of the jingling toy harder. When Litten tugs at it, he reflexively digs his feet into the floor, confusion painting his face. <But the nice lady said to share!> He whines, letting go of the toy entirely. <Ah, Litten!> He gasps.
In the other room, Mom’s dialogue has commenced. “He joins us at last,” the woman teases, gesturing for both men to join her at the table. “Come, both of you, sit! You can’t have a journey without a good meal.”
The table is set with a veritable feast, although Kazuki’s eyes glance over them derisively. They aren’t meals sufficient for his training and they don’t resemble the dishes of his childhood. He sits without an appetite.
Mom notices this. “Now, I know I don’t cook as well as your mother—” Kazuki raises his brows as her smile tightens “—but you must eat. She would be heartbroken if she knew you’re not eating well.”
He picks up one of the sandwiches. Chicken and parmesan, by the look and smell of it, and piping hot. “What do you know of my mom?”
Mom’s smile wavers. She places her hands on the table, one over the other. “She was my neighbor and my friend, Kazuki. You know this. A wonderful woman—so strong. A natural fighter. I couldn’t believe it when I heard how she—” she wrings her hands “—how she died out in the wilds.”
Kazuki makes no attempt to hide his disbelief; his face cracks into a smile, looking at her like she just made a joke. Mom is too preoccupied with her story and her hands to notice.
“But your father is a good man. It can’t be easy, raising a child alone and juggling his research. Please don’t resent him for not being around more.”
When she raises her eyes, Kazuki’s smile has flattened, his brows furrowed at her. “The other children may not have treated you well, but believe me, you will find kind people. A life of crime isn’t the path you’re meant to take, and I’m sure this pokemon journey will teach you that.”
She reaches for him, holding the one hand he has on the table with both of hers in an outpour of compassion. “I wish only good things for your future.”
Marinara sauce drips onto the floor in a red puddle; the sandwich in his hands has been crushed in his fist. He stares as if preparing to chuck it at her.
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Kazuki
•
You Can't Take Me
The Creed
Posts: 883
Trainer Class:
Player Name: Himura Atsushi
OOC Username: Sleepy
Arena Points: 113
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Post by Kazuki on Mar 3, 2023 14:37:09 GMT 9
The pain flares as rain lands on the fresh wound, yet he grounds his teeth and bears it, the thought of requesting help from a stranger deemed more inconvenient (for his pride). There’s a moment when it seems as if the trainer had given up, the distance between them growing, until they thought twice of it and began following behind him.
He eyes the nearby spire when it’s pointed out. It pierces the earth like a horn, raw iron charred black with the cause of their predicament. “Videogame bullshit,” he declares gruffly, trudging on.
It’s an open plain. Flat grass is all he sees, with some suspicious shapes a way off that could be burrow or a useless hill to die on. He’s about to take his chances when the stranger’s voice calls out. Seems like they found something.
The rain starts pouring in earnest. He clicks his tongue and turns around.
It’s a hovel, of course. The opening is embedded close to one of the spires—too close for comfort. Kazuki has to stoop to avoid bashing his skull against the entrance, the act of curling his body—and movement in general, really—causing his wound to protest.
As small as it seems, the burrow is extensive, forming a tunnel. A screech-like sound echoes a little ways inside, and investigation reveals it to be several rat-like critters quarreling over a large blue berry.
Videogame bullshit.
The blue berry comes bouncing their way, ending at their feet. The nidoran begin screeching at the humans who stood closest to their food.
Kazuki grimaces at their noise. “Shut the fuck up!” Before slamming his foot down, the blue berry bursting and creating a small puddle of juice.
Several pairs of red eyes begin to approach from the shadows of the burrow.
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Kazuki
•
You Can't Take Me
The Creed
Posts: 883
Trainer Class:
Player Name: Himura Atsushi
OOC Username: Sleepy
Arena Points: 113
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Post by Kazuki on Mar 1, 2023 2:47:19 GMT 9
Link to Successful Egg HuntTHE ROOKERY GIVES YOU...[FireEgg]DRZNyLmF1d200 EggHatch your egg IC to add this Pokemon to your Storage Box! 1d200
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Kazuki
•
You Can't Take Me
The Creed
Posts: 883
Trainer Class:
Player Name: Himura Atsushi
OOC Username: Sleepy
Arena Points: 113
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Post by Kazuki on Mar 1, 2023 1:14:01 GMT 9
<It was an accident!> Sprigatito cries. <And the word is squish!>
“Hey, now. No need to resort to names.” Kazuki hums, still preoccupied with turning the guy into a snow sculpture. Not the best spot for it, admittedly—every scoop was all soft. He was basically covering him in cold glitter, or turning him into a human-sized powdered donut.
“I’m helping you and your worm take a bath.” He tosses the snowboard, deciding to take matters into his own hands. Can’t make a masterpiece without using the right tools, after all.
“So, hold still.”
He lunges for him, intending to shove his face into the snow, the cat tucked in his hoodie squeaking in protest because this trip was supposed to be a vacation!
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Kazuki
•
You Can't Take Me
The Creed
Posts: 883
Trainer Class:
Player Name: Himura Atsushi
OOC Username: Sleepy
Arena Points: 113
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Post by Kazuki on Mar 1, 2023 0:56:05 GMT 9
Among the other areas, the Misty Timberlands bore the strangest energy. Ashen branches twist and contort to the sky, welcoming newcomers with a yawning gate of thorns. Paths are nonexistent under the veil of fog, and though covered with a thick canopy, there’s enough space between the bark to invite a thousand ways of getting lost.
A man hangs over one of the tall branches. The trees are so massive even he can lie back comfortably, waiting and waiting for the first sign.
When he does hear the crunch of leaves and footsteps heavy enough to identify as human, he rouses and leans down to peek.
What he sees is an unfamiliar head of wispy violet locks. The stranger doesn’t seem fit for battle—too thin—but it isn’t brawn that he needs. He observes how he behaves for a bit and, finding it sufficient, jumps down.
He lands in front of the newcomer with a resounding THUMP.
“Yo.” He says, rising back to full height. “You here to find the treasure?”
It’s one of the many rumors surrounding the area. Dialogue from certain NPCs frequently hint at the area’s apparent sentience; the missing posters that have piled, all tracing back to one fateful trip to the timberlands; the old myths that say a treasure of great value has been buried somewhere beneath the old roots.
None of that mattered to him, though. It’s the monster that apparently guards the treasure that interests him.
He crosses his arms impatiently. “Or are you on some other quest?”
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Kazuki
•
You Can't Take Me
The Creed
Posts: 883
Trainer Class:
Player Name: Himura Atsushi
OOC Username: Sleepy
Arena Points: 113
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Post by Kazuki on Feb 28, 2023 23:56:07 GMT 9
The snowball explodes against his chest. Since he’s actually clothed this time, the attack does no damage.
Kazuki snorts. “A snow bath, huh? Guess I should’ve buried you better, then.”
He guessed he could do with a break. He stepped off his board, carrying it with one arm as he stepped towards the white-haired trainer.
“You’ve got something on your sleeve,” he says, pointing at the little orange pest wiggling out from the guy’s sleeve. Because of his settings, he unfortunately didn’t hear the sick burn.
<Don't be rude!> squeaked his Sprigatito over his shoulder, having finally recovered from the vertigo and was ready to argue with the sleeve weedle.
“Let me help you with that.” Kazuki then proceeds to use his snowboard as a shovel to chuck hunks of snow at the guy.
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Kazuki
•
You Can't Take Me
The Creed
Posts: 883
Trainer Class:
Player Name: Himura Atsushi
OOC Username: Sleepy
Arena Points: 113
|
Post by Kazuki on Feb 28, 2023 23:38:33 GMT 9
He’d been wondering where the snowy terrain was. Every videogame had some variant of it as a staple, and as someone who grew up in the northern reaches of Hokkaidō, finding perfect skiing areas was like home away from home.
“Outta the way!”
A voice howls down the steep slopes rounding the tower. Kazuki laughed, his snowboard razing a path down the smooth planes of white. He was, for once, dressed appropriately, clad in gear he had presumably borrowed from the NPCs.
Presumably.
He weaves an absurd path, only narrowly dodging other players—many of whom were shocked by the near-collision, the man’s yelling, and the accompanying sound of a cat screaming for its life.
Sprigatito had thought being tucked in his trainer’s hoodie and going for a joyride would be fun.
Sprigatito had thought wrong.
They do come to something of a slow halt when he nearly bulldozes some poor guy covered in worms.
“Hey! The hell are you doing?!” Kazuki hisses, pulling his snow goggles off his face to glare. “I know you can’t die here, but do you want to fucking die?”
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