2019-08-03 - Miraculous Meetup! Questions and Answers!
| Title: Miraculous Meetup! Questions and Answers! | |
|---|---|
| Summary: Serpentina Ruse defeats an Akuma Villain named Acrochimp by herself, but the Akuma is purified by the late arrival of Ladybug. This incident raises a few tough questions for the newest known Miraculous User in Tokyo, but tension is calmed and the group gets to know each other just a little better. | |
| Who: Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Adrien Agreste, Fumiko Inoue, Niramo Umokeshi | |
| Where: Yamanote High City - Tokyo Tower | |
| OOC - IC Date: 08-03-2019 - 06-20-2019 | |
*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+* Tokyo Tower +*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*
This television broadcast tower is also perhaps the most iconic building in
Japan. A lattice giant inspired by the Eiffel Tower, Tokyo Tower looks much
like the French building, but has a more rounded, modern style, and is
painted in a red-orange tone. Bright white bands punctuate its height,
including one for the cylindrical observatory nestled near its peak. At
night, it lights up brilliantly: a cool white during the summer, a warm
orange for the cooler months, and various colors for special occasions. Once
the tallest building in the world, it remains, at 315 meters, the second
tallest in Japan, and is a popular tourist attraction.
Tokyo Tower straddles a four-story building aptly named FootTown, containing
museums, art galleries, and restaurants. Around its middle is the Main
Observatory, which contains a restaurant, a Shinto shrine, and a club for
live music. Near its peak is the Special Observatory, accessible for an
extra fee, which provides a spectacular 360 degree view of the urban
skyline.
Whether it be attributed to its iconic nature, its ability to transmit
long-range signals, or its sheer height, be warned: Tokyo Tower is a
frequent target for supernatural events.
<Pose Tracker> Ladybug [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.
A butterfly flits out, finding its target.
Within his lair, Hawkmoth smiles, addressing the fury his familiar has found.
"Acrochimp. Your act deserved fame and glory, but you were relegated to the sidelines. Bring me the Miraculouses, and I shall grant you the power to be top banana."
Distantly, there is agreement. Soon, there is turmoil.
<Pose Tracker> Serpentina Ruse [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.
The epic battle reaches a head. A green-clad fighter with an umbrella and a figure in red with a flaming baton clash at Tokyo Tower. They leap over each other, flip and swing around the French- inspired tower, and trade dodged blows with their respective weapons. It was like an acrobatic show.
In fact, the man in the red costume - which upon closer inspection is clearly ape inspired - was once an acrobat. That is, until he was fired, and gave in to the darkness and despair in his heart. At that moment, he was visited by a dark butterfly and a convincing voice, granting him power and a new identity - Acrochimp.
Fighting against the new simian-themed menace, the girl in green-scaled costume is none other than the rising hero Serpentina Ruse. Her umbrella more frequently meets air than baton or body as she swings and thrusts it, but same for Acrochimp's baton. Soon, however, she decides to pull one final gambit. Leaping back to the other side of the tower, she then launches herself into the air, twisting and twirling... faster and faster... until - with her parasol pointed out in front - she becomes like a drill flying towards the acrobat. She zooms past him, but turns sharply back. Acrochimp has no choice but to block with his baton...
...Which is what Serpentina wanted.
A loud crack and a powerful shockwave later, and Serpentina is lying on the ground, quite some distance away from her foe - now holding two halves of a baton with a butterfly escaping it.
<Pose Tracker> Ladybug [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.
Up and away flies a little blackened butterfly.
The man that was Acrochimp lies defeated, just now sitting up to blink away his confusion at what he was doing and where he is. A baton broken alongside a promise to Hawkmoth, unhurt but unsure what had just happened. He looks around, scratching his head much like the ape he briefly became, slowly rising to try to make sense of his new surroundings. "What...happened to the stage?..."
That doesn't matter in the moment, though. The Akuma has been defeated, and the expression of its power is fluttering away. Higher and higher, off to who knows where, trailing specks of malevolent shadow-
-until something snaps it out of the air, like a swooping carnivorous insect.
"That's enough trouble from you, little Akuma. I'll deliver you from evil!"
Ladybug catches her yo-yo, a stern expression on her face. With one arm, she's clinging to the side of Tokyo Tower, having just lashed out to catch the butterfly - and breathing heavily for someone who's just arrived. Did she run the whole way, perhaps? Whatever the reason, she glowers at the yo- yo for a moment before sighing, tapping it again to free a now brilliantly white butterfly. "Farewell, little butterfly...at least you won't be back with company."
Releasing her grip on the tower, she slides down the support to land near Serpentina. A few steps to approach, and she pauses before holding out a hand. "Serpentina, right? I hope you still have a few minutes, because we really need to talk."
It's not long before she's standing on the roof of Tokyo Tower's observation deck, high enough to see the city as a whole. Ladybug paces back and forth for a few moments, searching for words and wondering where to begin - but finally looking toward her closest companion. "...do you want to try explaining?"
<Pose Tracker> Chat Noir [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.
Chat Noir leaps across the building tops, hoping to get there in time but his heart jumps as he lands and spots the free butterfly. Yet, he breathes easier as his lady appear and catches the butterfly.
He wipes the sweat off his forehead as he watches the butterfly be purified.
"That was a bit too close for comfort," he mutters before he jumps and lands beside Ladybug.
He glances to Serpentia and takes a bow.
"Pleasure to finally met you in the flesh or perhaps in the scales would be more fitting," he offers a wink as he straightens. "We know you mean well taking it on your own, but..," he grasps his chin, "how to put it delicately you have been missing a very vital step in fighting the akuma and that is letting Ladybug catch the butterfly."
He glances to his other companions hoping one of them could continue.
<Pose Tracker> Sourisi [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.
Sourisi prides herself on being on the scene when a magical monster or villain threatens Tokyo. Be it accidently being at ground zero, Takk keeping an ear out for anything she might have missed or something too big to be ignored, Sourisi tends to be in the thick of most situations. So it's easy to understand her shock to find out about an attack at Tokyo Tower from an acrobatic monkey armed with a deadly baton while she's changing television channels at home.
A hurried call to Takk to finish his snack, making sure the front door is locked tight once more and Sourisi is leaping out her bedroom window in a mad dash to the Tower. Who knows what kind of mischief could be managed if she didn't get there to assist with the battle!
A few minutes later finds Sourisi leaping off one last rooftop to get to the Tower grounds. It
doesn't look like too much chaos has been reaped, but the mouse girl is just a moment too late to
offer any assistance with the fight. Serpentina Ruse managed to break the baton of the aerodynamic
monkey and-- wait, was that an Akuma flying from it?! Panic starts to fill Sourisi as her eyes trace
its' path. If it gets away, then Tokyo will find it's next circus show coming to town too quick for
comfort.
Thankfully, Ladybug managed to arrive on the scene before the Akuma can fly away, and with an impressive show of her cleansing yo-yo, the Akuma butterfly is purified and flies off with wings of white. Running up to Ladybug and Serpentina, Sourisi's glad to see she's not the only one late to the violent party. "Glad to see we can make the last show of the evening!" Though, from Ladybug's words, it's clear tonight isn't going to end just yet...
The view up on the observation deck is amazing, and there's something different for looking out on the cityscape when you're not behind glass. Sourisi gives the amazing view a lingering look before turning away to talk to her fellow Miraculous Users. The fact that the scaly Serpentina is one as well is still a little shocking yet obvious in hindsight.
"Those butterflies can turn their former victims into public menaces again if the dark magic isn't cleansed from them. As much as Chat Noir or I would want to, Ladybug seems to be the only one who can do the cleansing. Well, at least as known Miraculous Users go, anyways!"
<Pose Tracker> Serpentina Ruse [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.
Victorious, Serpentina slowly rises to her feet. /Another person saved,/ she thinks, proud of herself. But that pride was not long for this world. She accepts the offered hand allowing her to stand up better. "Thanks... um... not sure how you know me, but I'm glad to be getting popular." She shakes off the stun, and follows her to the top of the building. Soon after, she's surrounded by other Miraculous Users.
"Explain what I'm doing?" Serpentina tilts her head slightly and raises an eyebrow under her mask. "I'm not sure if you'd... oh, you seem to also be a Miraculous User! For the longest time I thought I was alone! In fact, I was fighting Akumas alone! And now-"
That was not likely the answer anyone wanted to hear. The cat-themed user first tells her that there was an order to doing things, then Sourisi explains further, and Serpentina goes blank. "That... that sounds bad. You mean... I haven't been helping people? But... I was told I needed... I needed to..."
<Pose Tracker> Ladybug [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.
During the explanations, Ladybug keeps pacing. Thoughts are racing through her head, driving her feet on that back-and-forth path. She pauses, occasionally, sparing a quick glance to Chat or Sourisi or Serpentina, but it's like something's hounding her the whole time.
Chat Noir is delicate. Sourisi's a little more direct. But neither quite sums up what's lurking at the back of Ladybug's mind, and Serpentina's in a bit of a panic...
For once, the girl behind the mask doesn't catastrophize - she just sits down on the deck roof, legs folded, in a sudden interrupting thump.
"It's not...entirely bad. Not entirely your fault. You should probably yell at your Kwami later for not telling you, but - you've helped. There's just..." Ladybug waves at the air, as if trying to catch the words that are buzzing around. "Cleanup. It's the cleanup afterward.
She sighs, looking to Chat for a moment's support, but trying to focus on Serpentina in the moment. "I've been seeing the odd corrupted butterfly lately, slow enough that I could catch it - but I wasn't sure if they were coming or going. I'm guessing you've been handling a few fights, off and on? That...helps, honestly, it's just...I let a butterfly escape my first day."
Ladybug hunches over, arms around her midsection. "One mistake, and..." She trails off, lost in memories.
<Pose Tracker> Chat Noir [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.
Chat Nori sucks the air through his teeth as he pats Ladybug's shoulder. "It wasn't all your fault my lady. I should have fully listen to my Kwami more too."
He turns back to Serptina. "We all help, including you, in fighting the akuma BUT after a fight ends the butterfly has to be purified by ladybug or else they could multiple and cause several more at once."
He kneeled in front of her. "Did you hear about Stoneheart? Well, we made the mistake of letting the butterfly go and it caused that..." he glances to his lady as he hesitate on the word to use without causing her more guilt "well just a bit of a cat-tastrophe."
<Pose Tracker> Sourisi [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.
Sourisi's trying to keep it jovial, but a small part of her is concerned when Serpentina starts explaining about her previous battles, and against Akuma villains as well. If she hadn't asked Takk some pointed questions after seeing Ladybug and Chat Noir in action against Air Strike, she may have gone off and made the same mistake as Serpentina has been making...
The Miraculous Ninja shakes her head softly as if she can shake off those thoughts and starts to tug on the end of her braid. Yeah, it would be dealing taking care of the symptons of a disease without trying to cure it.
Seeing the jovial Serpentina worried and almost having a panic attack, Sourisi tries to give her some comfort. "Hey, the way I see it, if they do end up being re-possessed, you already know what those Akuma are capable of and their tactics, so it should be easier fighting them again!" Knowing your enemy and how to combat them means everything Serpentina has done isn't a waste, right? "And now we know to be on the lookout for loose butterflies. Maybe a few jars to catch any strays for Ladybug...?"
Could Akuma escape from normal jars or would enchanted ones be needed?
The mention about Stoneheart has Sourisi's ears perking up and she stops messing with the ends of her raven hair as she gives the original Miraculous duo another look. Just because they been protecting Tokyo a lot longer than Sourisi doesn't mean they didn't know what they were doing w hen they first started either? Having multiple Stonehearts must have been bad if the looks shared between Chat and Ladybug are anything to go by, and Sourisi can't let bad memories try to ruin the mood.
"Just because mistakes were made doesn't mean you didn't learn anything from them, and everything turned out well in the end, right?" Walking up to the others, she waves a hand around at the city. "There's no giant boulders monsters taking over Tokyo and rocking the city to its' core, after all!"
The talk about mistakes brings a young boy to mind and a saying he's rather fond of. Serpentina could use those words of wisdom right now. "A good friend of mine has some advice for moments like this. Essentially, if everything always went perfectly the first time, life would be missing out on other great things like...oh, the microwave! A scientist was messing with radio waves and ended up finding an easy way to cook food."
Sourisi snaps her fingers when she manages to recall the story. Frozen dinners were not the healthiest, but Sourisi has been finding apprication for the microwave after several late nights.
<Pose Tracker> Serpentina Ruse [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.
A few more hollow mutterings and a distant stare... and Serpentina breaks. She falls to her knees, staring at an ornate bangle on her wrist. A mix of horror, despair, confusion... and anger fill her near-glare. "Did... did you know about this?" She whispers. "Did you know... I was making things worse?"
Before her negative emotions could seep into her very core, however, reassurances from Ladybug, Chat Noir, and Sourisi snap her back to reality. "S-sorry... must fill you full of hope to see a powerful ally such as myself show such wisdom and fortitude." She has recovered enough to at least hold back a giggle at 'cat-astrophe' - poorly - and smile as Sourisi explains that making mistakes happens and can lead to being better. There are still hints of tears in her eyes, however.
Serpentina tries to bolster her mood, or at least fake improvement. "I'm sure you have questions for me, and I certainly have questions for all of you. If you want to know who I really am, though, I'm not sure I'm ready to answer that one. Who should go first? I suppose you all already know each other, and thus asking each other questions would be silly unless you just wanted an excuse to ask something personal about one of your friends~"
<Pose Tracker> Ladybug [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.
Ladybug stirs from her memories at the hand on her shoulder, a soft smile as she looks up at Chat. "Maybe listen a bit more, kitten. Just a bit."
Sourisi's optimism, too, is infectious, and she slowly straightens up again. The mention of jars brings a pensive look to her face, a mental memo filed for later, while the rest at least lets her breathe a little more easily as the ninja tries to cheer up Serpentina.
There's a quirk of her eyebrow at 'powerful ally', and she starts to speak about the questions - but laughs out a cough and coughs out a laugh instead. Holding up one hand, she tries to get the giggles out before speaking properly.
"Sorry, sorry - it sounds like your Kwami at least got one message across. We all keep our identities secret - I don't even know what kind of eyebrows Chat's hiding behind his mask." She turns to the black-suited boy with a smirk. "It's a unibrow, isn't it?"
Back to Serpentina, though, she just shakes her head. "We've started working together while masked, but....honestly it feels like I haven't been doing this long, at least compared to people like Sailor Moon or the Wind Knight. We're all figuring this out, all trying to do our best."
<Pose Tracker> Chat Noir [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.
Chat Noir grows quiet but his face brighten as the mood changes and he winks at Ladybug. "Ah, but that is assuming that I have eyebrows" He waved a finger at her in a teasing manner. "You will never learn about the red cat shape birth mark on my nose!"
He laughed as he looked to Serpentina. "We're all rather newbies to the to more 'veterans' but hey at least we're learning together." He tucks his hands behind his head. "Fail for one is fun for all!"
<Pose Tracker> Sourisi [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.
Sourisi is feeling like a huge weight is leaving her shoulders once the scaly parasol wielder is able to relax after her near breakdown. And was that a smile at Chat's latest cat joke? That's three pun lovers in the group now, and Ladybug is starting to get outnumbered. They'll convert her to the pun side soon enough!
Serpentina's assuming that they all know each other beneath the mask is worthy of a slight frown, but one she does her best to hide from the others. There were a few who knew who Sourisi was when not fighting evil, but none of her closest allies are on that list. Takk assured her it was best to keep everyone's identity hidden from each other, but tonight is a good example that they could call each other if they just knew who everyone was.
Maybe it's something to try to reason with Takk later?
"Well, I do have one very important question. Do you like any desserts or cake? I think a 'welcome to the team' present would be a good idea, and I wouldn't want to give you something you can't have. You can have gulcose, right?" That was actually two questions but...well, they were related. It should be fine!
Wait, Ladybug is still figuring things out? From some of the plans Sourisi has seen the polka-dotted heroine pull off, Sourisi would think she's a professional magical girl! "I just look for something that's obviously evil and smack it with my tonfa until it gives up. It's cheesy, but it works most of the time!"
Sourisi gives her three friends a wink, glad everyone is starting to relax. Looks like Serpentina is going to fit in with the others, at least!
<Pose Tracker> Serpentina Ruse [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.
Levity... humor... this at first felt like a possible interrogation, but now with these elements, this feels like friends hanging out. "Haha... so we're all in the same boat. Though with a cat, a ladybug, a mouse, and a snake, maybe it is an ark?" She looks around, pondering questions. "Ladybug. That purification power is unique to you, yes? Is that your main power? Cat. Do you always make such hiss-sterical puns?" She turns to Sourisi. "Uh.. um... oh! Is it awkward being a mouse, when there's a cat AND a snake now? You aren't afraid of me are you~?" She winks, then slyly looks back at Ladybug and Chat Noir. "And a double person question... how long have you two been dating~?"
<Pose Tracker> Ladybug [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.
It's all Ladybug can do to not groan loudly at Chat's joke; instead she just pinches the bridge of her nose and does her best to hide any smile. Sourisi is upbeat, though, and has a fair question. "Desserts? I probably shouldn't, I already have plenty, but I'll confess to a little bit of a sweet tooth. Cupcakes or something would be fine."
She turns to give Serpentina an encouraging smile, even if it's a bit shaky as she mentions the power. "I...don't know, honestly. It's something I have and Chat doesn't, so at least for now I try to make sure I handle the cleanup. Usually I just rely on my Lucky Charm - some object that's supposed to be the key to a plan that I'm usually left scrambling to figure out. I should tell you about that time with the cat toy..."
<Pose Tracker> Chat Noir [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.
Chat Noir snickers as he gives a little shrug. "It's a work in progress."
<Pose Tracker> Sourisi [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.
Serpentina opens the floor with several questions and a cleverly snuck-in pun, and the one sent towards Sourisi is easily enough to handle. "I'm not too worried! Tom is a gentle furball who can get the ball rolling, and you seem more eager to pulling me out of some hot water when I get in over my head. Thanks again for that, by the way!"
Sourisi feels like she's missing something from Serpentina's question, but it's just a silly question, right?
Ladybug answers the question about sweets with an ever sweeter answer, and the ninja mouse gives a quick nod. "Then I guess i'll have to try making some cupcakes if I ever know we're all meeting up somewhere. Beating up monsters and sugary snacks kinda go together, if you think about it."
It's not often that Ladybug is on the back foot, but the snake lady saves the best question for last. Her blush is nearly atomic as she sputters out something that -might- be an no, and Sourisi's laughter can be heard as Ladybug takes flight. She gives Chat Noir an aside glance before shaking her head. "You'll be lucky to get the foundations set, Chat Noir."
<Pose Tracker> Serpentina Ruse [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.
"Yeah... Peridot really rained on our parade, but I was glad to lend you an umbrella. Or something." Serpentina smiles at Sourisi and leans on her parasol. "I'm also glad you were there to help... and I was kiiinda wondering about this meeting happening sooner or later... just not at this scale."
Looks like someone struck a nerve. The serpent gives a grin to the poor Ladybug as she stammers, though that smile turns to a look of shock when she takes off. "...huh. I wasn't expecting that. Hm... is she always like that?" She shrugs, and reaches up to wipe away tears. "Thank you both. Tell Ladybug thanks for me too? And..."
She takes a couple steps toward Sourisi. A serious expression overtakes her face, as if she were on an important mission, or about to deliver dire news "Strawberry."
She lets the word linger in the air for a few seconds, then elaborates. "Candy or cake, I like anything strawberry. I take it that means we will meet again, and if so, perhaps... well... do we here do anything fun when not in civilian forms? Assuming you have civilian forms. I know an arcade..."
<Pose Tracker> Sourisi [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.
"Strawberries? Hmm...always wanted to see about trying to make cake with strawberry slices. I'll give it a shot, then!" No fighting she has to do tonight, everyone knows to be on the lookout for loose Akuma and everything is smoothed over. Pretty much a perfect evening! Sourisi starts walking towards the edge to descend, but she has to say one last thing. "Arcades are always a blast, but never waste money on crane games. They're totally rigged!"
And with a short hop, Sourisi leaps over the edge of the observation deck and to the streets of Tokyo below.
She flushes a bit at Serpentina's question to Sourisi, wondering about that tone but not wanting to butt in - and then flushes even more at the double-person question, for a very different reason. "What?! That - you've got - not happening! Bug out!"
...and abruptly, like a little bug surprised by a sudden light, she's gone - leaping off the edge of the roof, swinging away on her yo-yo.
