*000000*

[X] Time for Business

-[X] Alchemist (8/8)

-[X] Machinist (1/8)

-[X] Time to make your best alchemist stuff.

-[X] You need to make an emergency package. Be sure Rosalia and Madison know exactly what's in it. This is for if something happens to anyone, not for sale.

-[X] One endbringer package. Strongest stuff for basically the worst case. Be sure it stores well, and get a simple lockbox for it if you have one handy.

-[X] Hospital package! You might / might not be able to get them out yet, but you can make what you think would be a good set for one. If you can, send one to Panacea and one to a good hospital for testing. Ask them to send feedback on what would be best. You can make another package sometime before the end of the month.

-[X] Then onto fun stuff. Make a series for Madison. Something to make her awesome! Emphasize safety.

-[X] Could you make an aerosol for Rosalia? Sort of like an inhaler so that she doesn't have to drink your potions?

"It smells like one of those old asian herbal shops in here." Rosalia's nose wrinkles cutely when she comes downstairs in the morning, having slept in past when Madison arrived. The store is in full swing, with plenty of visitors coming to see the moogles after hearing about them last night. For the moment, you're behind the counter working the alembic and mortar as you grind out potions of various types.

If your predictions are true, you should get clearance to sell your tonics sometime today, which would lead to- Ah, your phone is ringing. "Kind of inconsiderate of them, don't you think? Since you can't talk and all." Rosalia huffs, grabbing the phone for you. "Light's phone, you know, the cape who can't speak?"

"A-ah, sorry! It slipped my mind!" There's a young man on the other end, who's caught off guard by the reply. "I uh... This is Tim Grant, from the law group Light has on retainer? I'm calling with good news." Rosalia rolls her eyes, but makes a sound for him to continue. "The testing on your tinker tech went through okay, with no noticeable side effects. You have permission to sell them now, and uh... And the Protectorate has generously doubled the initial grant in order to keep the batch they received for testing."

That is good news. You certainly won't be worrying about money any time soon. "So we can sell potions now?" Rosalia hums. "Alright, thanks for letting us know." She hangs up the phone a moment later, sliding it back over to you as she rests on the counter. "So what are we making?"

You slide her a set of bottles, as well as a page of labels for her to apply. You're starting with potions, ranging from the cheaply made basic ones all the way up to a dozen of the super-max potions. Restoring 60 lbs of someone's body mass isn't a common demand, but it's better to have them and not need them. It's really too bad that phoenix down work in ways alchemists have yet to really understand. Something that can restore a person just from the lingering imprint of their aether...

Well, not that there's any of that here to work from. The best someone could hope to do is preserve a patient's brain until you can restore the rest of them. Restoring brain damage should be possible, but there's a risk of changed personality and behavior as variations take place. That, and regrowing a body would come with some severe handicaps until they got used to a completely new nervous system.

So, potions, potions, and more potions. Elixirs are... Well, a few elixirs wouldn't hurt, but you can't honestly think of many times when people would need to physically recover as well as experience the mental rest portion of it.

Scratch that, those would be perfect in Endbringer fights. You'll definitely add a few dozen of those to the list. Given that you can only take one per day, the fight itself shouldn't need more than a few hundred right? One for every participant, in case of emergency. That should work.

So, potions, elixirs, ethers, and then you need restoratives, like spine drops and eye drops. Things the hospitals can put to good use, fixing things their barbers and healers can't. A care package for the local hospital, at the very least. A private batch for your own medicine cabinet would be good as well.

You also need to make a batch of those tonics, to help boost people's health. Infusions of strength, and vitality and such. Those should be big sellers, even if you make the weaker doses that take several weeks to fully function. Oh, you should write a disclaimer, that if they don't exercise their new abilities regularly they'll diminish again. That's just common sense, but it pays to forewarn people.

About the only thing you don't need to make is glue, that and the growth tonics. No one around here has any rare plants to speed the growth of, you assume. Imagine that, indoor farms hidden out of the way, growing rare and expensive plants. Hah.

Oh, and you should make a better codex and grimoir. Something with a higher storage capacity can help you improve on the moogles the next time you go summoner. Today's going to by a very busy day.

"So what's all this then?" Madison interrupts, plucking a small red vial off of the counter. "Strength infusion." Actually... You should start her on that treatment, huh? If you give her the good stuff, monitor the doses carefully, you could manage to give her a single dose every 3 hours. Six attributes, every three hours, that's an 18 hour regiment. That leaves six hours of sleep a night.

Well, unless you get Montblanc to dose her in her sleep.

You quickly get to scribbling down ideas, mapping out a regiment to ensure she gets the doses at the right time. The average adventurer has around 20-21 in every attribute, when measured by the typical methods, and the tonics start building up from a baseline of 0. So three weeks should get Madison up to adventurer levels. Whether or not she can push beyond that afterwards is kind of up in the air, but you can test that by training her into the ground after three weeks.

That's a hundred and twenty six vials, at the very least, just for Madison. Two-hundred and fifty two to include Rosalia. This is... Going to take a while.

--------------------

"These things are selling as fast as you make them." Rosalia sighs, placing another full crate down on the table and filling out the forms on top. "Protectorate wants another five hundred potions, they're going to start distributing them across the country for emergency use."

Ugh, of course they do. This really is going to be a full day of crafting. Your pack for yourself and the hospital is done, at least, and- "Text from Aegis, he wants a dozen potions for his team, and a half dozen ethers."

"Twenty four more, thanks for your business." Madison cheers, passing the sealed crate off to the man standing by the counter. He gives a solemn nod, taking the crate and going on his way. "So uh... Is anyone thinking about how much money we've made today?"

You honestly haven't been keeping track, that's more Rosalia's job anyways. That and putting the orders in front of you so you know what to make. "Please! Please!" Ah damn, someone's shoving at the crowd again, trying to get in. Already you can see the moogles floating over the cluster of people, prepared to intervene if things get violent. "Please, my son, he can't walk. Someone said you could help-"

"Ma'am we can help!" Rosalia shouts over the din. "Please remain calm, we're not going anywhere, we'll help you any way we can in just a moment!"

"She can go ahead of me." A young man with dark skin grunts, stepping side and hauling the woman forwards. She's pale faced, with old clothing and deep lines in her face from years of stress.

"Please... He was hurt by hookwolf years ago. He can't walk, and he's in such pain... They put him on painkillers but he tries so hard to not rely on them, and-" The woman begs, gripping the counter tightly.

"Is it a spinal issue? Or a missing leg?" Rosalia asks, moving to the back where you keep the premade dosages.

"A back injury." The woman replies quickly.

"Spine drops then. Three hundred and fifty dollars." Rosalia insists.

"Of course! Of course, if this works... It's worth it." The woman nods, reaching out for it, then haltingly bringing out her purse. "This is all he needs? He won't need more?"

"No more than just the bottle. One dropper full, under the tongue, every three hours until the bottle is empty. You can take a break to sleep, but don't do more than a dropper every three hours, understand?" Rosalia explains, holding the vial tightly as the woman pays and grabs for it. "Understand?"

"Yes. Yes, of course." Satisfied, the woman quickly stuffs the vial into her purse and, clutching it to her chest, rushes out the door.

The young man who let her past steps up next. "You have anything that uh... Well... I'll be straight with you. I know some people who want to quit what they're on, but need a little help. You have anything that'll help them detox?"

Rosalia pauses at that, glancing over in your direction. Detox huh? You gesture towards the antidotes you've made, and Rosalia nods. "It'll be quick and messy. They'll probably feel like shit afterwards, and no potions for three hours when they're done."

"So long as it works." The young man nods, placing cash on the counter.

----------------------

"Alright, that's enough, we're closed!" Rosalia calls, giving a wave to help the moogles usher out the last of the stragglers. There's not too many left, but having regular hours is important. You can always work through the night to ensure you have a large amount of potions and such to fall back on, and the rest of them can just shop later in the week. You'll make plenty of everything, so that there's no need to do custom orders.

"Oh my god... I never thought I'd hate working here." Rosalia sighs, slumping down against the counter as a moogle locks the door. "That was a nightmare."

"I didn't mind it." Madison chirps happily, accepting the vial that Montblanc passes her right on time. "We got to help people."

"You know some of those people are bound to be gang members, right? Buying potions for the next time they get into a gun fight?" Rosalia mentions, raising an eyebrow.

"Well... Maybe they'll survive that gunfight at least." Madison shrugs. "But this was the most successful day of sales yet! By a huge margin! We should celebrate, by doing something crazy, and fun, and I know just what to do!"

"It's time to go home." Montblanc informs her, still sounding slightly monotonous.

"Agh! No! Come on, don't ruin this for me Montblanc! I was going to ask if Rosalia wants to-" Madison whines.

"I'm super tired, sorry kid." Rosalia informs her, rubbing the back of her head. "Rain check? Some other time, I promise."

"Promise? Really? Really really?" Madison gasps, turning to look at you with wide eyes. "You too? You'll join in right? It'll be even better that way. I'll spend a whole paycheck getting something super cute to wear, and then we can use your room because it's got that huge-"

"What did I just agree to?" Rosalia asks, as Montblanc ushers your employee out the door. "I figured worst case it'd be a date, but why do you need to be there? And why the bedroom?"

You shrug, not entirely certain yourself. Mating habits on this planet are strange as ever. "How'd your little get together with Missy go, by the way? Get up to anything fun?"

You give her a wide smile, happy with the result of your little talk. Though... "She wants to talk to me huh?" Rosalia winces. "Yeah, I shoulda seen that coming. Look, I hope she doesn't come in the way of us being friends-" You interrupt that by standing and pulling Rosalia into a hug, letting all of your affection flow through her. In a way you love her, and you want her to know that.

Maybe she and Missy just need to talk, and they can work things out. Communication is key and all that. "Thanks... You know you really are larger than life. You just swoop in and suddenly everything revolves around you, and not in a bad way. It's like you've become a foundation for my entire life, giving me stability where there wasn't any before. I can tell you anything, talk about anything, and rest easy in your arms, and you'll always be there with that same dumb smile."

"Even having these dumb little heart to heart talks, you know?" Rosalia laughs after a moment, pulling back and giving you a soft smile. "Hey, how about... How about you give me Missy's number? That way we can become friends, and try and work around all this awkwardness. I don't want to start thinking of her as a rival or anything."

Hmm, you could do that... Or you could invite Missy over to the store to hang out in person. She and Rosalia can talk, you can mediate, and you can give her the present you made her! You grab your phone and text her quickly, waiting patiently for a response, which comes a full twenty minutes later as you resume crafting.

Ah, seems she was in the shower, and... 'Thinking of u ;P' whatever that means. You invite her over but... It seems like she's busy tonight, what a shame. But, apparently her dorm is having a girl's night tomorrow, hanging out, eating junk food, watching 'chick flicks'. You're invited, so long as you go in 'girl mode', which means wearing something cute.

That could be fun.

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♦Topic: Let There Be Light!

In: Boards ► Local Flavors ► North America ► USA ► ENE ► Independents

Risque Rambler (Original Poster) (Veteran Member)

Posted on February 7, 2011:

This is not a drill, Immaculata High School just put out the word that the school was entering into a lockdown because someone strange just entered the school. I know that no one likes to hear about these things through a forum post but I just got the call from the school. An unknown cape just flew or jumped there, and that all that was on the automated message.

I'm freaking out right now, you expect this kind of thing to happen at Winslow or Arcadia but this never happens there. I really hope that whatever brought that cape there turns out not to endanger the students or teachers and the PRT responds quickly.

EDIT: Turns out that this was the first appearance of a Case 53 that's going by the name Light. This thread will now serve as a general repository for all theories, guesses, and sightings of the newest addtion to Brockton Bay.

EDIT2: Okay, he opened a store on the Boardwalk called Alpha's so if you want to show off some of the cool stuff that you got then that's okay but please don't just spam the thread with pictures. I'd prefer to keep this one of the more discussion based threads.

(Showing Page 1 of 42)

► 1812Warrior

Replied on February 7, 2011:

Geez what is it with Brockton Bay and new capes? Do they stick something in the water there?

Here's hoping that its not some cape out for revenge and the school becomes a crater.

► DeepSixDiver

Replied on February 7, 2011:

Wow this thread came up quick, I don't even see the story in the local news yet.

► FluffytailEnthusiast (Cape Groupie)

Replied on February 7, 2011:

Is it someone completely unknown or do they have any idea of who it might be? Maybe Uber and Leet are doing a stream?

► InsertNameHere (Temp-banned)

Replied on February 7, 2011:

It's not Uber and Leet, they don't have a stream running on their site right now for their premium members. Plus OP said that there was only one person that they saw going into the school all powered up. When those two are doing something they tend to stick together getting to a scene.

If its a flyer their probably thinking its one of the E88 members.

► WhiteVoid (Veteran Member)

Replied on February 7, 2011:

My money's on someone completely new.

Coming in hot like that they were probably responding to some danger that only they knew about. Be the big damn hero and instead they show themself as a rookie and freak people out.

Only a matter of time before they end up in the Wards.

► Dual Edge Cutter

Replied on February 7, 2011:

And there it is on the local news. I am continually amazed with the fact that so much stuff gets shared here before the public gets it.

EDIT: And whatever it was is over. Okay well that was quick. No reports of anyone injured. No ambulances. I'd say it was a false alarm except the PRT appears to be there and they're not driving away if that was really the case.

► Risque Rambler (Original Poster) (Veteran Member)

Replied on February 7, 2011:

Thank goodness.

I'm glad that everything turned out alright. I got a message stating that the lockdown was over and everyone is fine.

► U_UBomber

Replied on February 7, 2011:

Any more information from the news or OP about the mystery cape?

Were they actually hostile and needed to be talked down or was it a rush to the rescue scenario or what?

► Junkrat (Veteran Member)

Replied on February 7, 2011:

Someone just got in to the PRT van but I couldn't see their face. From the talk of the people that saw him arrive he doesn't match anyone else in the bay. So definitely a new person.

Congrats BB for the new cape.

What are we going to name him?

► WhiteVoid (Veteran Member)

Replied on February 7, 2011:

Are we certain its a guy? If its an Immaculata student it could just be a flat girl.

► BriefOrder

Replied on February 7, 2011:

The way he came out of the sky I say we dub him Hopper.

It was interesting seeing him move across the sky like that. Just jumping off from one spot to another, like he was landing on some invisible platform from one to the other. But so far apart, its a pretty cool power. I happened to see it but any chance that someone managed to get video?

► SenileDevil (Cape Groupie)

Replied on February 7, 2011:

I think this one should be alright, he isn't wearing a mask but he's so far away that you can't see his face at all.

[LINK]

I agree with BO that it is kind of cool to see. I wonder if he can carry other people with him. Being that high up would be thrilling. Its a shame that New Wave members don't give people rides.

Anybody else see him do other powers or is that it?

► 600lbHacker (Temp-banned)

Replied on February 7, 2011:

Just another worthless cape showing up and ruining people's day. @ me when this Hopper does anything interesting in a couple months if he ever shows up again.

► Dandelying (Temp-banned)

Replied on February 7, 2011:

Nobody @ him

Ever.

► SolarEclipse

Replied on February 8, 2011:

Hopper sighting,

He's downtown near city hall hopping from roof to roof. People first noticed him when he was at Green Memorial Park for a little bit and appears to be heading southwest right now.

Not the typical move for someone wanting to take on the local gangs. Sure is making a spectacle of himself. Hope he doesn't shut down another school today whatever he's up to.

► Steady

Replied on February 8, 2011:

And he just went into the public library...

Did this guy just run out of good reading material yesterday? What a jackass.

► LeadBalloon

Replied on February 8, 2011:

Geez where's a PRT insider or one of the Local capes sharing information about this guy? I don't think I can remember anyone being this public, second day out and still not wearing a mask after being picked up by the PRT. You think that they would have read him the riot act to at least be a little more inconspicuous.

Seriously what is his deal?

► HardRockHostel

Replied on February 9, 2011:

Crazy story, my cousin just saw that cape you guys have been talking about in a back alley. He was swinging a pick axe at the back wall and grabbing the chunks. It was making a huge racket but when he, the owner, and another customer went to investigate the noise they yelled at him and he hopped away.

Only those chunks weren't brick but precious stones and metal ore. and after he left the wall turned back to unbroken brick and the chunks vanished into the air.

Help me PHO what does this even mean?

► BriefOrder

Replied on February 9, 2011:

That's an excellent question. Which I have no answer for. Some kind of Tinker thing?

@DriedSage You got any ideas?

​

End of Page. 1, 2, 3 ... 40 , 41, 42

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♦Topic: Let There Be Light!

In: Boards ► Local Flavors ► North America ► USA ► ENE ► Independents

Posted by: Risque Rambler

Posted on February 7, 2011

(Showing Page 5 of 42)

► DeepSixDiver

Replied on February 11, 2011:

Hopper Sighting in Boston!

What did you do Brockton Bay? One of the weirdest new capes shows up in your town and before the week is over they're already moving to a new city.

That has to be a record or something.

► FluffytailEnthusiast (Cape Groupie)

Replied on February 11, 2011:

Maybe they want to protect his identity. After he just showed up at Immaculata again and made that jewelry with his power. All sorts of cape groups have to be interested him if he's a tinker.

► InsertNameHere (Temp-banned)

Replied on February 11, 2011:

Interesting point.

Counterpoint. She's not wearing a mask in Boston either. It looks like she just went there without warning. And Holy Fuck where did she get that spear? And the Wings?!

She has been holding back, I thought she was flashy before but is this because of the jewelry she made? Some tinker add-on or could she always pull that off?

Are we sure that she's not a related to Lung?

► SolarEclipse

Replied on February 11, 2011:

She doesn't look asian to me so probably not related to Lung plus if she was ABB than that would be kicking a hell of a hornets nest with a new cape. I know some of you like to bad mouth Accord but give him enough time and things tend to turn to shit for those people that piss him off.

There's a reason he's been a public name for so long and its certainly not because of his personality.

► DriedSage (Power Guru)

Replied on February 11, 2011:

It's becoming increasingly clear that Hopper is not descriptive at all of what this new cape can do. Here's hoping when we get an official name from the horse's mouth or from the PRT that it'll be a better hint as to what he's capable of cause right now he's looking like some kind of dragon.

Looking like a Changer/Striker/Mover/Brute/Tinker package. Which all together is insane. I'm now 80% sure that he is actually a grab bag cape because what kind of theme could encapsualte all of that I really don't know. Even for as much as I follow this kind of stuff.

► Risque Rambler (Original Poster) (Veteran Member)

Replied on February 11, 2011:

I think she rescued that other female cape, sorry I don't know any of the ones in Boston, do you think that she called her to come and give her help?

Looks like she arrived in the nick of time. I didn't even notice anything was happening in that video until Hopper went all Legendary.

► XYZdrone

Replied on February 11, 2011:

I am so confused right now. Why does half this thread think this cape is a boy and the other half thinks she's a girl?

I know that the video of her/him working in front of the school didn't stay up long but come on can't we at least agree on that after geting such a clear look at the face and body?

OP you should put up a a poll so we can put this to bed or else someone ask the next time Hopper is walking down the street.because fuck secret identities am I right?

► Lollipop (Cape Groupie)

Replied on February 11, 2011:

PRT just put out a notice about the new cape to the local police departments to not interfere with his movements and to contact the PRT if he causes a disturbance. His cape name is Light and they said that he acts off its because he's a case 53.

► HalfEmpty

Replied on February 11, 2011:

What's a case 53?

► WhiteVoid (Veteran Member)

Replied on February 11, 2011:

It's means that they are suffering from Amnesia and that they have something about them that makes them not human. Sometimes they get called the monstrous capes but never call them that to their faces.

Least now we know why Light's first stops were to a school and to a library. Hey Mods, any chance that since he doesn't know who he is that the restriction against sharing his face could be lifted so someone that recognizes him could help reunite him with his friends and family?

► Dr. Fix-it (Moderator)

Replied on February 11, 2011:

No. Rules are rules. Follow them or else take a vacation.

► Dual Edge Cutter

Replied on February 11, 2011:

Light...

Light...

Yeah I got no idea how that relates to his powers. Everything he's doing is just holograms and illusions?

► DriedSage (Power Guru)

Replied on February 11, 2011:

I suppose its possible, capes can be tricky when you don't know exactly what you're dealing with. It gets real easy to underestimate them, perhaps Light is trying to show themself as too strong for someone to bully into their camp. It's certainly more palatable to me that its something like that over he's the next Eidolon.

► BriefOrder

Replied on February 11, 2011:

No Light. Come back to Brockton Bay! T_T

I'm sorry that I gave you such a bad hero name.

► HalfEmpty

Replied on February 11, 2011:

I doubt that's why she left.

► TeacupTyphoon (Cape Wife)

Replied on February 11, 2011:

The Joke

Your Head

► Dandelying (Temp-banned)

Replied on February 11, 2011:

@600lbHacker

Looks like Light isn't so useless after all. Weeks not even over since his debut and he's already doing real hero work :p

► Mollusk (Verified Cape)

Replied on February 11, 2011:

Interesting start for a newbie cape and a Case 53. We'll have to keep an eye out for him in case he ever needs a team. Doesn't look like he's come to talk in his own thread yet.

► SaturdaySamurai

Replied on February 11, 2011:

Not surprising, if some of those earlier theories about her actually being mute get confirmed.

► Jawbone

Replied on February 11, 2011:

And he's gone to ground.

Will he show up tomorrow in Boston, Brockton Bay, or some other city?

After today I think it's going to be a lot easier for him to find a place to settle down. When he does pick a place do you think he'll start wearing a mask?

​

End of Page. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 ... 40 , 41, 42

-----------------------

[X] Break day! Well, sort of.

-[X] Armorsmith (8/8)

-[X] Culinarian (1/8)

-[X] You're not taking orders today. Today you're making armor for yourself, fulfilling your requests for armor, and that's it. If anything fun comes up you can do it, but that's all you're doing today.

-[X] Make some treats and just kick back and relax with people, and with Missy when that comes up.

"Let me guess..." Rosalia sighs as you climb under the covers with her, "Another loud crafting day?"

You nod, feeling her warm body snuggle up against you. It's a nice feeling, as usual, her soft rear pressing against your hips as her head rests on your shoulder. "Eight o'clock. Some of us enjoy our sleep." She yawns, going silent a moment later. That's fine with you, the store doesn't open until rather late on weekends anyways, since Madison wants some time off.

"I texted Missy." Rosalia admits almost half an hour later, her sudden voice the only sign that she's woken up. "She seems suspicious of me, but she's being nice enough for now."

Well, you're glad they're getting along. Sort of, at least. "I dunno... I've got to convince her I'm not trying to steal you away, you know? That's tough, especially for a girl her age." You give her a look, pointedly reminding her that she's not much older, or more mature. "Ok, yeah, but I'm a super hero. I don't think I need to have a normal relationship, you know? How would I explain running off to save the day in the middle of a date? Besides which, our lives are dangerous, so we need that extra stability."

"Not that I can tell her I'm a super hero or anything." Rosalia sighs. "Maybe that can be your excuse? Ah, who am I kidding, you don't need an excuse, you just love everyone." You nod, she does make a good point. "You know what's really dumb? I used to think there was some special order to things. Like, I'd meet someone interesting, we'd date and I'd get to know them, I'd sleep with them, give them my body, and if they liked it maybe we'd really connect, you know? And here we are, connecting, and I didn't have to give you anything."

That's not true is it? She's given you plenty. You give her a reassuring hug, and she leans into it for a moment. "I'm going to keep talking with Missy. Maybe I can convince her I'm not some homewrecking threat or something."

Well, you'll leave her to that. For now, you've got armor to make!

----------------------

Hammer hammer hammer, metal plates and rivets. Old cloth from earlier stitched just so, with the right plating in the right places. Chain links done with minute details, woven together in complex interlocking patterns. Armorsmithing isn't easy or simple, but that's fine. You can take your time with it, even though the store is busy as usual. Word has officially spread about your potions, it seems, and now you're getting people who've come from out of town to shop.

You've had to explain multiple times that you're not doing custom orders today, and that Rosalia is taking a list of what's required for the next time.

Your Dragoon armor actually requires a surprising amount of metal to craft. It takes a delicate touch to shape each piece of interlocking plate, each one thin enough, angled just so, to be light and mobile while offering the best deflective abilities. The entire thing, once put together on a nearby rack, exudes a sort of 'menacing' aura, much like the dragons it's inspired by.

The Warrior set, by comparison, looks more savage and fearsome. Heavy cloth covers thick layers of chainmail, with bulky metal plates protecting your vitals with a certain level of comfort. It's deceptively defensive, meant to goad enemies into attacking theoretical weak points, before you ruthlessly take advantage of the openings left in their wake.

The Paladin set is more traditional, thick heavy plate that limits mobility in favor of overwhelming defense. An immovable object to compliment the class's ability to defend others. White metal with gold trim, making you a shining beacon of justice.

Conversely... Rosalia says the Dark Knight armor makes you look like 'Batman'. Apparently this is fitting, as the mythical hero is often referred to as 'the Dark Knight'. Unlike the others it doesn't make much use of metal plates at all, instead using a weave of metal cords that can easily stop knives and bullets. Rosalia likens it to 'kevlar', but from what she said it's far, far more durable.

Lastly, you have your Gunbreaker outfit, the most stylish of the bunch. Using the same kevlar-like weave, you craft a stylish trench coat in white and gold, with plenty of room for the shells you'll no doubt be making heavy use of. The body suit makes heavier use of metal plating and chain, though it hugs your body a little tighter than anticipated.

There's a soft clicking noise as you straighten up and adjust the coat, looking yourself over to ensure everything fits properly. Glancing up, you spot Rosalia wearing a smug grin, her phone in her hand. "That's dangerous, you know. Your dancer costume looks kind of cute/sexy, but this is like... Molten hot."

You tilt your head in confusion, looking yourself over once more. It is a bit warmer than your Dancer costume, true, but you don't think you'll overheat in it. "You figured out what you're wearing tonight?" There's a soft chime as someone messages Rosalia, and she rapidly types out a response. "Hold on, before you get changed, pose with a weapon for me? I want to take a few shots."

You nod, withdrawing your gunblade from your inventory and slinging it over your shoulder. You take an easy, laid back stance, and give her a confident grin as she snaps a few more pictures. "Dangerous. Very dangerous." She nods seriously, putting the phone down as it chimes several more times. "Okay, let's pick out your outfit for the party tonight."

-------------------

There's a happy popping noise coming from the pot in front of you as you stand by the oven of your apartment. After much thought, you decided to take Madison's suggestion of making popcorn for the party tonight. Not just any popcorn, though, gourmet popcorn! Or, well... A variety of types of popcorn, all of which are sure to be delicious.

You already have some set aside in various bowls. Some seasoned and spiced, others coated with a dusting of cheese, and a bowl filled with ones covered in fresh made chocolate (white and dark). This current batch is kettle corn, with the kernels popping away in a fresh batch of hot caramelized sugar.

"Hey have you seen Madison?" Rosalia asks, poking her head in from the stairs. "I sent her up to grab something and she hasn't come back down." Hmm, the last time you saw her she was poking her head over your shoulder and stealing a few pieces of the chocolate popcorn. It's been quite a while since then. "No? Hmm... Hey, Madison, where are you?"

"Ah!" There's a soft thud and gasp of alarm from the closet across the way, and both of you turn to look in the general direction. Idly, you continue to move the pot around on the heat, ensuring the popcorn doesn't burn.

"Madison... Are you in there?" Rosalia asks calmly, taking a deep, slow breath.

"Um... No?" She calls back, sounding uncertain. "I mean um..."

"Madison..." Rosalia sighs, stepping forward. "Why are you in the closet?"

"Well... Haha... It's not like I'm shy or anything, or afraid of rejection, because pretty much everyone's open about it and my family's never been very traditional, it's just no one's ever asked me directly and-"

"Madison, why are you in my closet?" Rosalia growls, palming her face in frustration. "That closet specifically, at this moment."

"I'm looking for that thing you sent me for?" She doesn't even sound certain of that. "I was, and then I got distracted, and then I certainly didn't see a super hero costume, because I had my eyes closed the entire time because of... Dust. Yeah, super allergic, so I keep my eyes closed while in confined spaces like this, so I couldn't possibly have seen anything I shouldn't have-"

"Madison." Rosalia interrupts, stomping forward and throwing the door open. The younger girl looks terrified, before glancing over at the costume hanging on the rack beside her.

"Would it be better if I claimed I was doing illicit things with Montblanc?" Madison tries weakly, holding the stuffed moogle in front of her.

"I assure you, I've been the perfect gentlemog, kupo." Montblanc deadpans.

"Alright... Alright, here's what we're going to do." Rosalia sighs, pinching the bridge of her nose. "We're going to close up the shop, and then we're going to sit down and have a nice, long, serious talk, like adults. We're going to talk about the importance of privacy, the importance of secrets, and what happens when bad guys find out you work for a super hero."

"Um..." Madison haltingly points towards you, and you give a happy wave as you continue to toss the popcorn about, ensuring it cooks evenly.

"Okay, fair point. Everyone knows you work for a super hero, and you have Montblanc. But some of us want to have normal lives outside of work... And outside of our 'side jobs'. So it's very, very important you don't tell anyone about what you saw here." Rosalia explains patiently.

"C-clearly... Clearly Light's been commissioned to make a costume for some other hero?" Madison states, though she's lacking any conviction to her words. "She just... Happened to leave it there, to be delivered later?"

"Good girl." Rosalia sighs, patting the younger employee on the head.

"So what are your powers?" And there comes the frustrated sigh again.

-----------------

"You go on ahead. I'll take care of this." Rosalia sighs, waving you towards the door later. You're dressed up for your party, you've got the snacks in your inventory, and Alpha's waiting for you.

"I'm thinking my safe word should be Sunshine." Madison declares from somewhere further inside.

"You don't need a safe word." Rosalia grumbles. "We're just talking."

"Okay... Um, do we have any rope? The waxy yellow kind is really bad for my skin and-"

"Just go. I'll take care of this." Rosalia repeats, turning and shutting the door. Well, whatever she's going to do, you're sure it'll be fine.

-----------------

"Yes?" The dark skinned girl who opens the door gives you an appraising look, a single eyebrow raised up as she takes in your appearance. "Huh... You must be Missy's 'friend' right? Hold on. Missy!"

"Coming!" You hear the rapid approach of footsteps, and the girl steps out of the way just in time to let Missy slam into you going full speed. It doesn't do a thing to knock you over, or stop you from lifting her up to soak her momentum. "You came!"

You nod, putting her down and letting her look you over. "Wow, you look like-Uh... You look cute." She smiles, casting a glance over at her dorm-mate. "Light this is Zelmia, Zelmia this is Light."

"The new hero in town huh?" Zelmia notes, crossing her arms over her chest. She certainly has more of a chest than Missy, actually. "Thought he was a guy?"

"Hmm?" Missy tilts her head, playing dumb.

"Thought you were dating him too." Zelmia presses, her lips curling into a knowing smirk.

"Ah... This is, um..." Your girlfriend trails off into nervous laughter, but her friend doesn't push it any further, instead turning and waving you both inside. "You look really cute like that. It's almost a bit weird." Missy whispers, leaning up to place a quick kiss on your lips.

You smile and kiss her back, giving her another hug before allowing yourself to be pulled inside to meet the others. "This is Kanna, my roommate." Missy explains, introducing a girl with vaguely hingan features. Her skin is pale, her hair is dark and straight, and she seems to shrink cutely under your smile. "You've met Zelmia, that's Sam, her roommate, and that's Clair."

Sam's the shorter of the two, with tanned skin and waves of blonde curls flowing down her back. She's also wider, not fat but certainly 'chubby' in a cherubic, cute sort of way. Clair, on the other hand, has short sandy blonde hair and a thin, athletic build. "Hey, nice to meet you." Sam greets warmly, her words carrying a slight southern accent.

"Yeah, sure." Clair agrees, not seeming too enthused.

"Clair's a bit grumpy because we dragged her into this." Zelmia teases, getting a weak glare from the thinner girl. "It's not like you had anything better to do."

"I did, but then my date cancelled." Clair huffs. "I swear I'm never talking to that jerk again. You know he's never once actually texted me without me initiating the conversation?"

"Maybe he's just shy?" Kanna suggests. "Or busy?"

"Fuck it, if he's too busy to say 'hi' once a day, I'm too busy to put out for his sorry ass." Clair huffs. "He's nothing special anyways."

"Here here!" Zelmia cheers, throwing open a miniature fridge and grabbing drinks. Sam finishes doing something with the screen, and soon enough the beginning credits of a movie come on. "We've got this place to ourselves for the night, you girls ready to pine over some real heart-throbs?"

"You know it's fiction when a guy can make any part of you 'throb'." Clair snarks.

"Hey now, some of us hold out hope that some charmer will sweep us off our feet." Sam replies airily.

"Sure, you can hope. Guys with super strength exist, right?" Clair snipes, causing the tanned girl to shoot her a nasty look.

"Please don't fight." Kanna sighs, already sounding resigned.

"Yeah, let's just relax and have fun. Oh, Light, did you remember to bring-" Missy's words are cut off as you begin pulling bowls from your inventory, passing them out to the others with a happy smile. "Oh cool! Did you make this yourself?"

"No shit..." Clair blinks, taking hers with an appreciative glance. "Fuck it, if it's spiked and I wake up tied to a wall, it'll still be a better night than going on that date."

"Mood." Zelmia laughs, grabbing a handful. "Oh shit, so did you hear about Mr Parker?"

"What did he do this time?" Missy sighs, snuggling up a bit closer to you with a bowl entirely to herself.

"It's not the whole spandex thing again is it? Didn't he get in trouble last year for wearing those shorts while teaching gym?" Clair groans.

"I don't get it. The guy's hot, sure, but he's the gym teacher. Ew." Sam shrugs, popping a few kernels of popcorn into her mouth, her eyes widening a moment later as she shoots you an appraising look.

"It's the muscles. Most guys our age don't take care of themselves that way." Clair shrugs.

"Most guys our age have more important things to do than work out to impress girls." Kanna mumbles.

"What guys do you know?" Zelmia scoffs.

"Speaking of outfits..." Missy whispers, showing you her phone. Oh, the background image is that picture Rosalia took of you with your gunblade. Nice. "I've been talking to Rosalia a bunch since she got my number, 'mysteriously'." Ah, you hope that's not a bad thing. "I think she enjoys teasing me."

Oh? That's news to you. She opens her phone and flips through a few pictures, landing on one with the two of you curled up in bed. "I'm a little bit jealous." There's another with you at the stove, cooking. "Other than that, she seems... Nice. She hasn't kissed you or anything?"

"Hmm? Who's kissing who now?" Zelmia asks, scooting a bit closer.

"Yeah, you two are looking all lovey dovey. Missy, something you want to share with the class?" Clair prods.

"Missy! You scamp! Does your boyfriend know!?" Sam gasps in mock surprise, causing Zelmia to burst into peals of laughter.

"Knowing most guys, he'd want to join in." Kanna teases.

"No way. They say that, but guys get way too jealous, even when it's girl on girl." Clair dismisses that notion quickly. "They watch to get their motor going, then burn out without satisfying either. Or so I've heard."

"Right. No practical experience there." Kanna grins.

"You want to talk practical experience? I've seen your search history." Clair snipes.

"The hell you have, I go incognito, because I'm not some amateur." Kanna huffs. "Like Sam and her steamy romance novels."

"It has a good plot!" Sam insists, causing the group to break down into a fit of giggles. "At least mine are realistic, or are you telling me there's a dating app for Case 53's that are entirely tentacles."

"That's a racist stereotype!" Kanna yelps.

"Like we all haven't thought of it." Zelmia mutters. "You girls are all into some kinky shit, I'd put money on it."

"And when's the last time you had a boyfriend, Zel?" Clair retorts.

"Why the hell would I want a boyfriend like yours? That guy can eat my chocolate covered ass and I still wouldn't give him my name." Zelmia laughs.

"That's a joke right? People don't actually-" Sam interjects, going red in the face as Zelmia cackles wildly. Missy squirms up against you, a hand reaching down to clutch your thigh at how... Heated the conversation is getting.

"Alright, enough of this topic. More importantly, have you heard the latest gossip going around?" Clair leans forward, drawing everyone's attention. The night soon dissolves into friendly banter and gossip, who's dating who, what's going on between the teachers, who may secretly be a supervillain, that sort of thing.

It's a fun time, and you very much enjoy the chance to just hang out and socialize. "Hey, so uh... You can't stay the night but..." The movie is winding down, the girls sprawled out across the room as the popcorn is finished and empty cans litter the floor. Missy's eyes flick to her room, and she gives you a sly grin. "Still a bit weird, you wearing a skirt, I mean how does it even-" She freezes when you feel her hand slide up your thigh, coming to rest on your crotch. "You... It... What? Why is it gone?"

Well, she told you to come as a girl, right? You're not entirely sure how the whole gender thing works with you, but at the moment it appears you don't have a penis. "Missy? Something you want to share with the class?" Zelmia calls, giving a wide smile as your girlfriend removes her hand from your skirt.

"Shh!" Missy scolds, pouting cutely as she snuggles up with you once more. "Well there goes that idea. I know I said I'd use my... Mouth, but... I mean I could still... If you really wanted..."

[X][Missy] Maybe you can turn things around instead? Use your mouth on her, instead of the other way around.

-[X] Honestly you're always eager to make Missy happy, so why not take the lead?

-[X] What was it Zelmia said 'Eat my ass'? You're aware that's a thing, and Missy seemed to squirm a lot thinking about it, and it seemed like the good kind of squirm.

You grasp Missy's hand and smile, feeling her squeeze it back as she leans into you. "Do you want to then? I guess I could..." She glances towards Kanna, who's distracted with painting Sam's nails at the moment. The movie continues on in the background as Missy rises from her seat and surreptitiously pulls you along after her. "I'm going to show Light some music." She announces, drawing a snort of amusement from Zelmia.

"Have fun." The darker skinned girl grunts, shaking her head as you're led down the hall.

Missy's room is... About what you'd expect for a school. Two small beds, a set of shelves for books, and a dresser along the back wall. It's small, but not exactly cramped, enough for two people to live comfortably if they spend most of their time outside of it. "So uh... How-" You turn and cut your girlfriend off, pulling her into you and pressing your lips to hers. She hesitates for only a moment, squirming in your grasp, before kissing back with subdued enthusiasm.

"Sorry, I guess I was overthinking things a bit, huh?" She laughs softly, nose pressing against yours. "I know I said I'd be willing to give this a try, but... It's still just a little bit weird to me." You give her another peck on the lips, and then pull her down to sit on the edge of the bed. Slowly but surely she relaxes, getting into the kissing as you run your hands over her body. "Okay... I think I'm ready..."

You shake your head, smiling at her confusion as you crane your head down to kiss along her neck, your hands sliding up under her shirt to feel along her stomach. She gives a soft gasp of pleasure, lifting her chin to allow you access as you begin to tug at the hem of her shirt. "A-ah, can... Can you leave the shirt on? My chest isn't much to look at..." You pause, looking up at her eyes and seeing a slightly pained expression there. "I don't want to spoil the mood, but-"

You lean up to kiss her again, and then drop down onto your knees in front of her, watching her eyes widen in realization. "Wait, what are you doing down there?" She whispers, giving a soft 'eep' as you lean in to kiss at her inner thigh. "You're going to... Um... Are you sure that's okay?" Her face steadily turns redder and redder as you kiss along her inner thighs, steadily working your way forward until you reach the hem of her shorts, and then switching to work your way along her other leg. Your hands, meanwhile, tease along the waistband of her shorts, not quite dipping down beneath the material.

"Okay! Okay, you can, just... Stop teasing me..." She whines, reaching down and popping the button open. She squirms a bit to raise her bottom off the bed, allowing you to tug the shorts down over her knees as you continue kissing closer. There's a noticeable damp spot on her panties, and a heat coming off of her groin, but you ignore that in favor of teasing her further, planting kisses just along the edge of the soft fabric. "Please... Please stop teasing me..." Her gasping whines are music to your ears as you breathe softly on the damp cloth of her underwear, feeling her twitch and tremble.

When your lips finally press roughly against the cloth itself, feeling the dampness against your lips, she gives a low and satisfied groan. Your fingers curl into the waistband of her panties and tug, gingerly pulling them away as you chase them down her legs with your lips. There's a brief moment when the cloth sticks to her, arousal clinging to it as you free her core, her legs clamping shut in embarrassment. It takes quite a bit more teasing kisses to get her to open up and show you.

It looks similar to what you saw of Rosalia, though this is the first you've seen one up close. A tuft of hair atop the mound, a soft, downy brown that you've run your fingers through before, and a pair of light pink lips that are already spread and gleaming with desire. Uncertain how exactly to proceed, you plant your lips to hers, like you're giving her a kiss, and feel her jump in her seat with a muted gasp. "H-hey, be gentle!"

You heed her warning, pressing kisses to either side, before running your tongue up one lip and down the other. You remember she liked having the top touched and, spotting a little nub peeking out from her folds, you shower it with quick suckling kisses. Hands reach down to grip at your hair, tugging roughly as she holds you in place, urging you on more than her soft gasping mewls. "Oh fuck... Light..."

With that encouragement, it's easy to keep up the pressure, kissing, sucking, nibbling, even lathering the entire thing with your tongue. Her thighs clamp around your head, her back falling to hit the mattress as she squirms beneath your assault. You even push your tongue into her, feeling her squeeze and tighten around the intrusion, just like she did with your fingers, your nose rubbing up against that sensitive nub all the while. Her squeal of delight is wonderful, as is the way her heels dig into your back, as if trying to draw you further inside.

It surprises you when she rolls to the side, grasping her pillow and holding it to her face. You can barely hear the groan she lets out, muffled as she is, but you can definitely feel the way her body tenses up, her core clenching around you as she squeezes out more arousal onto your tongue. Pulling back, you allow her to roll onto her stomach, enjoying the way she pulls her knees in and lifts her rear, as if presenting herself to you. As her chest heaves for air, it bobs back and forth, enticing you to please her further.

So you do, pushing her forward and following her onto the bed. She gives a muted squeak of surprise as you press your lips to the plush cheek of her ass, freezing as you turn and give the other one a kiss as well. You know she likes having her rear squeezed and played with, how enthusiastically she responds whenever you cup and lift her by it as you're kissing. So you squeeze it again, this time spreading her wide as you lean in and press your lips to her lower ones once more. Her groan of satisfaction sends a shiver down your spine as you begin to kiss and suckle and lather her with affection again.

"Oh fuck... Yes... Please..." Missy's voice is still just a mumble, lost in her pillow as she presses her face down into it. One hand grasps at the covers, while the other reaches out towards your head. For a moment you think she's going to do what she did before, pull you by your hair and ensure you do your utmost to satisfy her. Instead, she grasps one of the hands squeezing her ass, and pulls it free.

Did you do something wrong?

And then she returns it to where it was, quickly, a soft slapping noise filling the room as she lets a low groan out into the pillow. Ah... What? "Please... S-spank me? Just a little bit?" Missy whines, shuddering even as she says the words. You pull back your hand and give her a light swat, feeling her whole body tremble. "Ah! N-not to rough, okay?" You nod, even as you continue to press your mouth to her, swatting her again and feeling her shudder. Two, three, five strikes to the left cheek leaves it redder than her blushing face, her core twitching each time you run your hand across it to sooth the pain. Another half dozen leaves the right matching, and when you squeeze her cheeks to spread her out she gives another happy wail of delight.

"I... I can't take much more..." Missy admits, as her body trembles through another climax. She turns her head towards you, biting her lip to stifle her groans, and you can see where her make up around her eyes has run down her cheeks and stained her pillow. "One more... One last big one, okay?" She asks, reaching back and taking your hand. You nod, thinking over what to do to make this one even better. As you think on it, you give her a long slow lick, from the very tip of the sensitive nub, her clit as she calls it, up along her lips, and continuing up without thought.

Her whole body tenses when you drag your tongue across her ass, her eyes widening and locking on yours as you pause to consider it. Zelmia did say something about 'eating her ass', and Missy did squirm at the idea. You assume 'eating' just means applying your mouth to it, so... You kiss Missy's cheeks again, watching her squirm happily as you sooth the abuse you applied earlier, her eyes still locked on yours to see what you're going to do next. Anticipating what your decision will be.

With a smirk, you move your head between her cheeks, letting your breath out across the spit-slicked hole, and watch her shudder. She likes it, you decide immediately, pressing another kiss there and feeling her groan into the pillow again. "L-Light, that's... Oh god... Oh fuck, Light..." She whines, sounding embarrassed but needy. "Please... More..."

You alternate between kissing and licking that hole and the other one, pressing your tongue into her core once more, and occasionally dipping lower to suck on her clit. Her breathing becomes harsh and ragged, her legs trembling to keep her upright until you reach out to steady her hips. She's close, like she said, to one last big climax, and you're going to make it the best one yet.

Both hands reach back to pull on your head, guiding you up until you're tonguing her thoroughly with abandon, any trace of planning gone in the wake of a desperate rush to push her over the edge. Her head rises from the pillow, her voice a low whine as you force the air from her lungs, and then...

And then the door opens, and Kanna walks in. You freeze, tongue pressed up against Missy's rear as it squeezes harshly down around it, her climax taking all control of her body away. Missy jerks and twitches, eyes wide as she looks directly at her roommate, too stunned to even make any noise but the whining wail of the last of her air leaving her body. Kanna... Blushes, a deep red that travels down beneath the collar of her shirt as she turns stiffly towards her desk, sitting down at her table and promptly putting a pair of headphones over her ears.

"Oh god..." Missy gasps, after her first shuddering, panting breath. Her face pushes back into the pillow with a low groan, her body flopping down limply on the bed, and Kanna continues to stare at the login screen of her computer. "Oh my god..."

You pull back, assisting Missy as she wiggles back into her shorts, and sit patiently, uncertain what else to do. Normally Missy likes to cuddle afterwards, enjoying the 'afterglow' as she calls it. But right now, it seems she's too embarrassed to do even that. Maybe you should explain things to Kanna?

"I uh... We should go." Missy mumbles, pulling herself to the edge of the bed and nearly flinging herself out of it. She's a mess, her hair a mussed mop, her make-up smeared against her beet red face, and her clothing crooked and rumpled.

She looks super cute like this, you inform her with a smile and thumbs up.

Sputtering, she turns and opens the door, pointing you out into the hallway. It's a short walk, in which Missy stumbles quite a few times, still trying to get her legs to work after the marathon of climaxes you've given her, but eventually you pass the common area, waving at her friends, and are left at the front door. "Okay... I can... I can salvage this. I think. I've just got to explain to Kanna and..." She pauses, looking up at your face, eyes widening. "You're still covered in... In... In me!"

You pause, reaching up to rub at your face with the back of your hand. It comes away slightly wet and sticky, shiny too. Oh right! Things got a bit messy back there, huh? "Oh god everyone at the common room must have seen that! Wait, what do I look like? Oh god..." She presses her head into your shirt, hiding herself away from the rest of the world as she has her little freak out. "Damage control. I need damage control..." She mutters to herself for a few moments, before leaning up and kissing you on the mouth. She pauses, as if determining whether or not she liked the action, before repeating it with a shrug.

"Gotta get used to it some time, right?" She laughs weakly, resting her head on your shoulder. "Okay... Can I... Do you have something to wipe my face with? And yours?" You nod, pulling out a scrap of cloth and allowing her to go first. Once her face is clean, she quickly straightens her clothing to the best of her ability, and then fixes her hair. "Right. I'm going to walk back in there, with confidence. Yes, I just... Did that. It's obvious. I've got to own it. Strut a little bit, right? That'll... That'll go well."

Somehow, she doesn't seem so certain. "They'll tease me for a bit, but if I don't let it get to me, they'll drop it for sure. So..." She exhales slowly, once more pressing her lips to yours. "Thank you, for tonight. I know I said I'd do one thing, and then... And then instead of getting upset you went above and beyond what I could possibly ask you and... I enjoyed it. A lot." She admits, her blush not a bit more under control. "I hope we can do it again sometime?"

You nod happily at that. It was fun, seeing her get all blissed out like that. Maybe you can find new and exciting ways to make it even better! "Why do I get the feeling you'd keep going a lot longer if we weren't interrupted." Missy sighs, giving you a lopsided smile. "I think I blacked out for a second during that last one. Any more and..." She shudders, but it looks like a good kind of shudder. "Okay, get going, I've got to head off any rumors. Thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you."

She says to get going, but her arms are still wrapped tightly around you. "There's definitely no way you can stay the night." She whispers, barely letting out a sigh of air. "Doing that until I fall asleep, then waking me up in the morning that way. I wouldn't be able to walk to work... I'd have to stay in bed and rely on you to take care of me... And when you have a dick it'll be even worse..."

You tilt your head in confusion, which must give away the fact that you just heard her, as she practically leaps back and turns towards the doors. "Good night Light! Talk to you soon, okay?"

With nothing else to do, you walk home with a satisfied smile on your lips.

-------------------------

[X] Plan Gold!

-[X] Goldsmith (8/8)

-[X] Alchemist (2/8)

-[X] You have a few projects you need to do. First be sure your basic potions are topped off, then work on personal equipment.

-[X] Once you have that done, invite Clockblocker and Vista over. You want to see if you can make something that could help with their powers. This is not required at all! If they accept, try your best to make them accessories for them. If they decline that's fine too. Vista needed a staff, and you want to make Clockblocker and old fashioned pocket-watch (For giggles.)

-[X] Then update Rosa's carbuncle to tip top shape!

-[X] While all of that is going on, put out new hours. Mondays and Tuesdays you will be closed to restock and reorganizes. Madison can come in. You'll likely need to do a bit of bookkeeping anyway.

-[X] Also, Missy needs to come over! Your gift! (If she wants some good jewelry you'll be happy to make it, but the carbuncle is the gift)

Crap. You forgot to give Missy her present! With everything that happened, and your rush to leave, it completely slipped your mind! Stupid, stupid, stupid.

But, this presents an opportunity. You can use your goldsmithing abilities to alter the jewel further, improving the model before you hand it over! Originally you were going to go with a traditional carbuncle model, but this give you the opportunity to make it more defensive in nature.

"Working on that thing again?" Rosalia questions, glancing over the desk at you. You've managed to whip up a few hundred basic potions, enough to stock the store for about a week, barring any unforseen disasters. "Going to give mine a tune-up as well?"

You may as well, come to think of it. Similar alterations, giving it a defensive barrier around itself while she's riding on it, that sort of thing should be useful. For now, you just need to- Ah, your phone gives a happy chime, and you fish it out to inspect. A message from Vista!

Vista: Hey, I'm all set to meet with you later today along with Clockblocker. Is 2 o'clock okay?

Hmm, it's later than you expected, but that's fine. It gives you more time to work on your jewelry. Aside from just creating your typical accessories, you want to fill the store with ornate works, beautiful trinkets, even a few music boxes if you can. Rosalia's shown you how her music box works, how it reads CD's and even tomestones to pull musical data from. You can definitely figure out how to make this work.

Your phone chimes again, and you glance back down towards it.

Missy: So I can swing by this morning, but I've got to leave by 1. Family stuff.

Ah, she'll miss the Wards. That's fine, she got to hang out with them last time they were here. Not everyone's big on meeting super heroes anyways. You fill her in, and get an 'ok' before getting back to your work. Necklaces, bracelets, rings, earrings, the whole works. Piece after piece flies off of your work bench as you lose yourself in your focus, etching, carving, and sculpting intricate detail work as you go.

Compared to this, what you did back at Immaculata is akin to children's finger-painting. These are true masterpieces, worthy of art galleries across the world! Ah, maybe you're letting this whole confidence thing get to your head. To be honest, the praise from your customers probably has something to do with it. Dozens of people crowd into the shops to look at the display cases, making noises of awe at the jewelry inside. Few can afford any of the best pieces, but there's plenty of requests coming in for simpler works that you can whip up in no time flat.

You make a set of jewelry for Rosalia and Madison too, while you're at it. The expensive kind, since they can easily defend themselves from would-be thieves. With Montblanc's help, in Madison's case. Missy's jewelry can wait until she's there to give her opinion on your work.

Speaking of... "Hey, it's really crowded in here today huh?" Missy asks, squeezing past the crowd to sit down next to you, with the assistance of the shop-moogles. "Oh, you're making jewelry!? I still have the necklace you made me." Sure enough, she shows off the glimmering metal chain around her neck.

Without waiting any further, you finish your current project and bring out your present, holding it up with a wide grin. Her eyes widen at the sight of it, and suddenly it's snatched from your arms and into a no-doubt bonecrushing hug. "Oh my god it's so fluffy!" Her squeal of delight reminds you a bit of last night, pure joy escaping from her lungs as she squirms around with it.

And that's not even the best part. You reach out and tap the gem on the carbuncle's forehead, and the three-tailed creature springs to life, leaping from Missy's arms with a 'yip' and shaking itself off. "It's... It moves!" She gasps, haltingly reaching out to pat the creature's head. It responds by pushing the gem into her hand, getting a feeling for its owner, and then giving a happy purr once they're connected.

"Is it alive?" Missy asks, reaching out and lifting it into her lap. The crowd is paying attention to it now, but you ignore them in favor of Missy's smiling face. "It feels like a plush toy, but it's moving and acting like a living creature."

You rest a hand on your chin, considering how best to explain what exactly a carbuncle is. A complex algorithm designed around the behavioral data of a certain breed of dog. Does this world have corgis? Well, regardless, the information's all there in the gem, serving as a central hub that makes decisions and sends signals to various arcane arrays throughout the body. It's even capable of reacting to predicted intent, based on the behavior and motions of objects around it.

Anything high enough velocity to injure a person is considered a threat, for example, and intercepted if it would make contact with Missy. You know you designed it, but without the proper perspective of a high tier summoner, you can only loosely touch upon the complex tasks it's programmed to execute, and their myriad triggers. Instead... You type out a quick 'Pet/Body guard/Projection'.

"Oh... Oh cool, so it's..." Missy mumbles, stroking the carbuncle's ears. "Wait, bodyguard? For me?"

You nod, giving her a serious look. She's your cherished friend, and girlfriend, and otherwise important person. Madison has Montblanc, and Missy should have her own friend to protect her. "Wow... So what does it do?" Well, to answer that... You gesture for a shop-moogle to come by, stepping back to clear a bit of space. On command, it sends a small bolt of 'Ruin' towards Missy, aimed to miss of course.

It whizzes by her head, and she flinches back from the sudden sound, but carbuncle is already off of her lap and growling threateningly. To demonstrate further, you order an attack that would otherwise hit your girlfriend. A thin barrier of light springs up in the way, absorbing the impact effortlessly, and carbuncle barks and snarls at the attacker, light gathering around its gem. You don't want your moogle destroyed so... Instead you grab one of the cheap frying pans you made the other day, and hold it up in the line of fire.

The bolt of light hits the metal with a screech, the Ruin spell finding any and all flaws in the construction of the pan and putting as much pressure on them as it can. There's a horrid sound of twisting metal as pieces snap along fault lines and the pan warps in several directions at once. "Oh... Oh wow... That's really dangerous huh?" Missy murmurs, reaching up to accept the scrap of metal that was once a pan.

You type out a quick message, informing her that the kinetic energy disperses 'harmlessly' against living organic material, feeling akin to being hit by... Hmm, how best to describe it. "Well... Is it safe?" Rosalia asks, stepping up to assist you. "To be hit by it, I mean?"

You nod rapidly, totally safe. It'd ruin weapons and armor, hence its name, but the worst it'd do to bare flesh is knock someone out or make them 'not want to fight'. Nymian scholars used the spell to support their marines in keeping the peace. Obviously they'd use more effective spells on monsters and such, improved spells like Ruin II and Ruin III and so on.

"Alright then... Demonstrate. Hit me with it." Rosalia explains, grabbing a potion bottle from the stash. "Worst case I get a bruise and take a drink, right?" Yeah, that should work. You nod towards Missy, who seems a little bit reluctant. "Come on, I've seen the moogles toss attacks like this around. Can't say I'm the store manager without knowing exactly what we're dealing with, right?"

"Okay then... Um..." She glances at the little turquoise fox-dog, which returns her look of uncertainty. "Carbuncle was it? Could you please attack Rosalia? Just once?" The plushy nods, building up a ball of light faster than you can blink and throwing it in Rosalia's direction. It hits her dead on, forcing a rush of air from her lungs and knocking her back on her ass. "Oh god!"

"It's alright... I'm fine..." Rosalia coughs, holding a hand to her chest. "Just... Caught me off guard. Man, it's like being hit by a gel baseball." Your friend blinks tears from her eyes as you help her up, turning down the potion you offer her. "I'm fine, really, just... Wow, that's one hell of a deterrent. I think this thing will make a great bodyguard."

"Y-yeah..." Missy nods, not sounding quite so certain.

"Hey, cheer up, you got to sock the girl who's been hitting on your boyfriend right?" Rosalia teases quietly.

"That's not what this is at all!" Missy huffs, scowling at your friend. "I just... I don't know how I'm going to keep this..."

Oh, is that all? You grab a cluster of crystals from your inventory, and then pass it to her. She takes it, giving it an odd look as it starts to evaporate in her hand. Hmm, problematic, maybe you're the only one who can recharge things this way? Or maybe it'll be fine, so long as the crystals are stored properly and only handled when needed? Questions for later. You press her hand to the carbuncle's gem, and the aether is rapidly sucked inside.

"Okay, that's how to recharge it, right? But... If this thing is going to follow me around everywhere, it's going to draw attention to me." Missy insists. "Let alone what the dorm leader will say about me having a pet, even a pet that's stuffed. And what about classes? And work?"

Hmm... You shrug. What about them? Carbuncle can act like a plushy when her dorm leader comes by, and it won't cause a disturbance in class. As for work, she's a model right? Wouldn't having a cute pet be a bonus?

"Light, I just... Can't have something this eye-catching follow me around, okay? It would draw too much attention to me." She sighs, patting the carbuncle on the head. "It's too noticeable..."

Hmm... Too noticeable... That's it!

You snap your fingers in realization, drawing looks from everyone present, as you grab a chunk of stone from your inventory. Emerald, Ruby, Topaz, those carbuncles won't work for your purposes, since they're far too noticeable. Moonstone and Onyx share the same problems, as well as requiring extensive reprogramming. Diamond, however...

No one's ever seen a Diamond carbuncle, because they're invisible! The same barrier that blocks kinetic impacts can be used to divert light as well! It's not foolproof, and without being a proper summoner you can't reconfigure this carbuncle entirely at the moment, but you can work something out. A patch of sorts, rerouting some of the aether through the current gem and into a glamour prism that-

"Ah!" Missy gasps as the carbuncle in her lap flickers and vanishes beneath her fingers, though clearly she can still feel its presence. "It's... Invisible?" There's a slight distortion when it moves, but if you aren't actively looking for it... Yes, that will do nicely. "Well... This solves some of the problems, but..."

There's another flicker as the carbuncle reappears, giving a happy yip as it runs a quick circle around Missy's feet. "Light, can I... Talk to you for a second? Alone?"

"Upstairs is free! And private! And the sound doesn't travel that far if you're loud even!" Madison calls, giving a wide, and somewhat smug, grin. You never did ask what she and Rosalia got up to last night... Best not to think about it. "It won't take long."

Oh, right, she has to leave soon, for that family thing. You wish she could stay to meet with the Wards. Maybe she'd get along well with Vista? You haven't spoken to that one much though, so you're not certain. "It's... Kind of about that, actually." Missy explains, tugging you by the wrist until you're upstairs, the carbuncle following in after you and shifting invisible once more as the door closes. "So... You know how super heroes have secret identities? Most of them, anyways? They put on costumes so that they can have normal lives when they aren't doing the whole super hero thing."

Yeah... That doesn't make much sense to you. Who wouldn't want to be a hero all the time? And if everyone knew you were some super strong adventurer, they'd know not to mess with you during your daily life. Who would pick a fight with the Warrior of Light doing their vegetable shopping?

Granted, there were always people asking for the Warrior of Light's assistance on all manner of things... It could get annoying, when you had other things to be doing, but you could just say no, right? There's always more adventurers that can help and- Ah! Maybe that's the problem? So few Heroes are open about it, so the few that are get swamped with work, and that makes others hesitate to reveal themselves?

"It's really important for some people, separating those two lives from each other. Otherwise they'd never have a moment's peace, and people would treat them differently, and their friends and family would be in danger. A while back one of New Wave, the group that doesn't use secret identities? She was... She was killed in her own home, because everyone knew who she was." Ah... That's... That's horrible. But those sort of things just sort of... Happen, don't they? To guard captains and lawyers and anyone with high profiles? The fact that she was a super hero made her more safe than average, since powers don't just disappear when you take your costume off...

Oh wait, you know what Missy's getting at! You rest a hand on your chest, and give her an earnest smile, letting her know that everything is perfectly fine. Even on days when you don't have any points in combat, you've got methods of defending yourself. Between your natural durability, your quick recovery, your potions, Alpha, even the moogles, you'll be fine even if someone attacks you at odd hours.

As for your friends... Rosalia can hold her own. Madison has Montblanc, whom you're going to be making a proper staff for later, and... Well, this is just more of a reason to give Missy the carbuncle, for her own safety. You doubt anyone would attack her to get to you, but it's best to be cautious. "You get what I'm saying, right? My... Work life, and my normal life have to be kept separate. I have friends and family to protect, and I value my time as just Missy. It's important to me."

You nod slowly, not entirely knowing where this turn came from. "So, when I go to work, carbuncle cannot follow me. Understand?" Ah... No, no you don't. What does her work have to do with things? If it's just worry about carbuncle being disruptive, being invisible should just-

"Okay so... Imagine, hypothetically speaking, someone like... Miss Militia. She's a well known hero, right? If she were to go out for some public event, and people saw a carbuncle following her, it'd be weird but she could explain. She's a friend of Light, it was a gift, she paid extra, something like that." Missy explains patiently. "But then, imagine some random woman on the street was seen being followed by that same carbuncle. It'd be super obvious they're the same person, right? Or, at least, enough that some people would insist there's a connection. Even if you changed the color, even if you made it invisible, it's bound to come up at some point, and carbuncle's too unique for it to be a coincidence."

So... If Missy was Miss Militia, hypothetically, having carbuncle follow her around would be troublesome. Right, you'd considered this when you made one for Rosalia, which is why you have hers go into pocket mode when she's not pretending to be Riding Hood. "Long story short, if carbuncle follows me at work, it'll be super obvious who I am when I'm not at work. I can't keep it."

Oh. Well... You may as well just put that same feature on hers. That shouldn't take too much effort, if you remove the glamour function. No invisibility, but she'll be able to take it with her as a little palm-sized rock. "Wait, seriously? That's it? You can just..." Missy growls, taking the stone and putting it in her pocket. Why does she look so upset? "You are just... So, unbelievably infuriatingly oblivious sometimes, you know that? I'm up here considering divulging my deepest secret, and not only do you not get it, you come up with a solution that makes the whole thing moot!"

Ah, well... "No! Don't you smile at me, I'm legitimately upset with you. And I shouldn't be! I mean, you're doing all this to help me, and I didn't have to tell you and I know you'd be fine with it if I did and- Aghhhh!" She gives a stomp of annoyance, turning around with her arms crossed to face the wall. You step up and wrap your arms around her, leaning in to press your lips to the spot just behind her ear. "No, I'm still upset." You can hear the smile in her voice. "One month. I'm going to give it one month. That's still way too early to be making this kind of confession, but you're uniquely qualified to understand, okay?"

You tilt your head, waiting for her to explain as she takes a deep breath. "It's like, seriously heavy, life or death stuff, you know? My parents would flip if they knew I was sleeping with you this soon after meeting you, let alone telling you this kind of thing. But I trust you, and I really, really hope that's not a mistake." She sighs, leaning back into your body. "So... Two more weeks, and I'll tell you. Okay?"

Well... Sure, if she wants to. Honestly, you're fine with her telling you anything, whenever she's comfortable. You want to learn more about Missy, everything you can, so whatever she tells you isn't going to be anything bad. The more you learn the better, after all. "We should go back downstairs before Rosalia gets any ideas. She's already been teasing me enough lately."

Well, you're glad they're getting along at least. "I'm starting to understand her a bit, as a person, rather than some kind of rival. She's... Not bad. I expected her to be petty, like this girl I know. She's dating this boy I know and always rubs my nose in it, and I guess I sort of figured that was how girlfriends should act around people that want their partners." She pauses, shaking her head suddenly. "Not that I want that guy. At least... Not anymore... He never looked at me the way you do, you know? Like my presence suddenly made the universe a better place..."

Well... Of course her presence makes the universe better. The universe only has meaning because of the people in it, as far as you're concerned. Omega can study the universe until the end of time, but your purpose is to study human interactions. Thus, humans are vitally important. "You get like that around others too, when you get to know them. I wonder sometimes if that makes me less special..."

Less special? Your interactions with Missy are unique. You couldn't replicate them with anyone else, or even emulate them to a completely accurate degree. To split it into categories, there would be Missy and Not Missy. The same as there would be Rosalia and Not Rosalia. If you were to be intimate with both of them, you'd have Girlfriends and Not Girlfriends, but then you'd be able to compare data between the two of them as your girlfriends, and...

Ideally you'd probably want to find boyfriends too, for comparison's sake. But the point remains, Missy remains unique regardless.

Light: Missy is Missy, no matter what.

"You really mean that, don't you." Missy sighs, a soft smile playing across her lips. "I think Rosalia's going to ask me soon. For permission to... You know... Date you. Is it selfish to want to say no?" You shake your head, assuring her that it's completely fine. You've got tons of data on monogamous cultures and their pro's and con's. "Because it feels crazy to consider saying yes, and I've been doing a lot of crazy things lately."

She presses her lips to yours then, practically melting into your arms as you return it. You stay like that for a few minutes, and then it's time for her to go, carbuncle following obediently at her heels. Rosalia casts you a thoughtful look when you return to work, occasionally glancing at her phone and getting distracted. You wonder what that's about, but surely she'll talk about it later if it's important.

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(This update became Way longer than anticipated, and it's only about half-way done. I don't have any real ideas for how to break it up with a vote, so... How about an interlude? If there's any perspectives you want to see, feel free to suggest something, otherwise next update will be the back half of Sunday)