** Situation: Masaji stands guard in the hall, while Athan remains in the
lobby. Tseng will pay Cloud a visit in his cell shortly... **
Athan> Kaia turns and starts heading into the room. "I'm going to get ready for
the banquet."
Athan> Kaia heads towards the press hall.
Athan> Kaia has left.
Masaji> Heidegger grumbles something unintelligeable about the people he's
forced to work with \.<
Masaji> Masaji . o O ( ... I just work here. )
Masaji> Kaia. o O (I see nothing...I know nothinug....I'm just here for the
party.)
Athan> Saitou enters the building, and the glass doors shut quietly.
Athan> Saitou enters with Rin following behind.
Athan> Saitou stalks into the room, yellow eyes taking in everything.
Athan> Masami enters the building, and the glass doors shut quietly.
Athan> Masami has arrived.
Masaji> Rude silently looks at his watch. o O ( Almost time... )
Athan> Athan sits behind the fron desk, looking rather bored at the whole
situation
Athan> Astraea enters the building, and the glass doors shut quietly.
Athan> Astraea has arrived.
Athan> Saitou gives Athan a sideways glance as he passes by.
Athan> Rin tags along behind Saitou.
Athan> Athan waves dismissively. "Head on over thataway-" he points to the
Press hall. "And don't forget your free T-shirt!"
Athan> Astraea steps in and sweatdrops at the free t-shirt offer..shakes her
head and walks into the press hall.
Athan> Astraea heads towards the press hall.
Masaji> Astraea comes in from the lobby.
Athan> Astraea has left.
Masaji> Astraea has arrived.
Athan> Rin asks, "Where do we get the T-shirt?"
Masaji> Masaji stands against one of the walls, being on duty tonight.
Athan> Athan points at a crate full of 'em
Athan> Rin takes one and lookds at it. o.o
Masaji> Kaia is off-duty, herself. For once. And she's taking every chance she
can with it. She wanders thoughtfully, looking over the people as they start to
arrive.
Athan> It's a T-Shirt with the shinra logo on the front. Looks pretty cheap.
Masaji> Kaia
Masaji> For once, Kaia is actually dressed in a feminine style. A strapless
evening dress rests across her somewhat broad shoulders, showing a daring brush
of skin against the clothing's azure hue. The neckline dips slightly, exposing
a teasing glimpse of cleavage, the rest of the dress flowing down her body in a
silky length of blue. The dress ends near her ankles, a slit up the right side
showing her leg as she walks. She wears a pair of delecate high-heel shoes,
adding an inch or two to her height. Her tawny brown curls have been carefully
drawn back, away from her cheek, and pinned there with a hair-comb of silver,
gleaming with sparkling stones. Her usually serious features have been touched
up with makeup, heightening a femininity previously hidden beneath the SOLDIER
exterior.
Masaji> Carrying:
Athan> Rin . o O ( It looks pretty cheap... )
Athan> Saitou smiles smugly, "I'm glad to see you're as bored as ever, Athan."
b ponder Hmm, Miss Kaia actually looks pretty good in a dress ^_^
Masaji> Masaji . o O ( Hmm, Miss Kaia actually looks pretty good in a dress ^_^
)
Athan> Athan sighs at Saitou -.-
Masaji> Astraea looks around and debates picking a seat where she can easily
leap out the window or door if necessary..decides against it and throws a curt
nod towards the gathered and seated, walking halfway down the aisle and tucking
herself there.
Athan> Rin blinks. "You know each other?"
Masaji> Heidegger sits at the shinra table, periodically looking at his watch,
and grumbling various things under his breath
Athan> Saitou says, "I've come here for some business before."
Athan> Athan nods to the two.
Athan> Rin asks, "Oh? What business was that?"
Masaji> Astraea snerks softly under her breath.
Athan> Masami heads towards the press hall.
Masaji> Masami has arrived.
Masaji> Masami
Masaji> The first thing that catches your attention as you look at this young
woman of about 5'4" is the waterfall of coppery hair that falls down her back
in curls and ringlets. Almost seeming to burn with a life of it's own, each
fiery lock seems to be in just the right spot, including a few that fall over
her forehead and two that fall in front of each of her pierced ears. Her
delicate features closely resemble those of a girl native to Japan, but there
are subtle differences. One look at her hunter green eyes, as well as her hair,
tells you she more than likely is from a mixed heritage. She has a very
determined air about her, as if little would deter her should she undertake a
task. Her attire is that of a businesswoman, elegant and attractive. A simple
white blouse that buttons down the front is worn under a red, double-breasted
suit jacket that is held secure by two ornate buttons. A matching skirt covers
her bestockinged legs down to her knees, and she wears a pair of red dress
shoes on her feet, the heels neither high nor low, but a medium height.
Masaji> Carrying:
Masaji> Rude, very much on-duty, is quite displeased with it. No expression
shows on his face however, as he silently watches the masses. o O ( I need a
vacation. )
Athan> Saitou frowns, "Something you don't have to know, let's go." Saitou
drags Rin into the press room.
Masaji> Masami (OOC) GLOMPS Masaji, "Oniichan! I finally found you!" n.-
Athan> Saitou heads towards the press hall.
Masaji> Saitou enters with Rin following behind.
Masaji> Saitou stalks into the room, yellow eyes taking in everything.
Masaji> Rin gets dragged into the Press Hall by Saitou.
Masaji> Burn walks in quietly, surveying the enormous room.
t c
Tseng> You enter the research level's primary prison cell.
Tseng> Shinra Tower: Research Level Cell
Tseng> A prison cell, to say the least. This cell is one of few even within the
Shinra building that is nearly foolproof with its design. Everything in the
room is attached to the walls or floor with a number of security precautions,
particularly on the main entrance. A single cot in one corner provides the main
resting place. The door itself is created of a titanium-steel alloy with a
four-stage security panel only found on the outside.
Tseng> [Exits : (O)ut ]
Tseng> [Players : Cloud ]
Tseng> [Things : None ]
Tseng> Tseng steps in, the door of the cell sliding open with a quiet *whrr*
Masaji> Kaia wanders around the people, giving a few of them a double-take,
before she remembers that yes, she's off-duty, and can just relax for once.
Heh. Almost forgot how.
Athan> Red_XIII enters the building, and the glass doors shut quietly.
Athan> Red_XIII has arrived.
Athan> Athan blinks o.o;
Athan> Red XIII pads in and on through. Don't mind me.
Athan> Red_XIII heads towards the press hall.
Masaji> Red_XIII comes in from the lobby.
Masaji> Red XIII curls up at the back of the room.
Masaji> Rin waves to Red XIII.
Masaji> Masaji watches the area with a hawk-like observation.
Masaji> Red XIII waves his tail at Rin \.n
Tseng> Cloud looks up from where he rests within the cell.. back against a cold
wall, with one knee drawn up near him and an arm resting on that. Raising his
blue within blue eyes slowly to meet Tseng's gaze, he simply looks silently.
Masaji> Astraea arches an eyebrow slightly as Kaia wanders past, snorts softly
and turns her attention elsewhere.
Tseng> Tseng looks down at the seated Cloud. "How is your health?"
Masaji> Rude's eyebrow raises sharply at the sight of Red. With a shrug,
however, he continues looking out upon the guests.
Masaji> Heidegger yells at one of the waiters, apparently for cooking his meat
medium instead of medium well
Masaji> Masaji . o O ( As long as nobody causes trouble, everyone's welcome...
Feh. )
Tseng> Cloud replies quietly, "... ... Well enough, all things considered..."
Masaji> Kaia glances at Heidegger, then shakes her head, edging well away from
him. Better to mingle with the other people than with that sort, thanks.
Masaji> Red XIII looks around warily, simply resting his chin on his paws.
t l cloud
Tseng> Cloud
Tseng> You see before you a young man, perhaps in his early twenties. He is
Tseng> of average height, around 5' 7", his stature one of someone in
Tseng> fantastic physical shape. He's slim without being too thin, without
Tseng> a trace of fat on his lean form. His face is smooth and rather
Tseng> handsome, well proportioned with high cheekbones. His large eyes are
Tseng> like a deep, endless pool of sapphire blue, seemingly endless. They
Tseng> almost seem to glow when you look into them. His blond hair is cut in
Tseng> a rather unusual fashion to most, but perfectly normal to him,
Tseng> forming spikes that steer every which way randomly from atop his
Tseng> head. Even so, the hair somehow seems to match the cool, serious
Tseng> gaze in his eyes. This is obviously someone that, despite their
Tseng> youth, has been forced by circumstances to adapt quickly to life's
Tseng> uncertainties.
Tseng>
Tseng> Cloud's attire, or lack thereof, is certainly unusual for him. He's
Tseng> wearing his typical deep-purple jumpsuit pants, loose about his legs
Tseng> for ease of movement, and belted very simply at the waist rather than
Tseng> the enormous support belt he typically wears for armament. On his
Tseng> feet he wears a pair of brown leather boots, tied together tightly .
Tseng> The bottom of his jumpsuit is tucked into these boots to prevent any
Tseng> looseness on its part. However, this is all he's wearing, apparently;
Tseng> from the waist up he is completely bare. Even his ever- present
Tseng> gauntlets are missing. It's more than ever apparent that, despite
Tseng> whatever his appearance from his normal loose jumpsuit top may give,
Tseng> he's in excellent physical shape. A fine sheen of clean sweat covers
Tseng> him, setting his rather sleekly muscled torso, chest and shoulders to
Tseng> glistening. It's obvious why he has such little difficulty using a
Tseng> sword such as his in combat when you watch the muscles rippling
Tseng> beneath his skin as the light plays on them..
Tseng> Carrying:
Tseng> Murasame, and Materia
Masaji> Rin mumbles, "Do ... .... what ..... looks .... .." to Saitou.
Tseng> Tseng looks at his watch. "We have a few more observations to make, then
you are free to go..."
Masaji> Masami falls asleep.
Masaji> Astraea . o O ( These things never start on time *yawn* )
Masaji> Saitou nods.
Masaji> Some generic band plays classical music in the background...
Athan> Reeve comes out of the elevator.
Athan> Reeve heads towards the press hall.
Masaji> Reeve comes in from the lobby.
Masaji> Rin mumbles, ".. .. .... .." to Saitou.
Masaji> Red XIII lifts his head, glancing towards Reeve.
Tseng> Tseng hmms. "If you'll follow me?"
Masaji> Saitou mumbles, "I have ....... from a few .. .. agents .. We .... .
..... sketch .. ... .. .. doesn't seem to be .... though .." to Rin.
Masaji> Rin looks around at all the people she doesn't know., o.o
Masaji> Heidegger dig into his meat, showing little manners \.o
Masaji> Rin nods to Saitou.
Tseng> Cloud meets Tseng's gaze for a long moment, unmoved, his own
crystal-clear. Finally, he stands up.. a pained expression crossing his face
from the coolness of the floor and wall upon muscles. He inclines his head
silently.
Masaji> Astraea . o O ( Pig. o.o )
Tseng> Tseng says, in a plain tone, "Why the glum face, you're being released."
Masaji> Masami wakes up.
Athan> Rachel enters the building, and the glass doors shut quietly.
Athan> Rachel has arrived.
Masaji> Reeve walks in from the lobby... . o O ( Drat... That extra work took
longer than it should have. )
Tseng> Cloud asks quietly, "... ... Just like that?"
Tseng> Tseng turns for the door. "Just like that. We're not villains, Mr.
Strife."
Masaji> Red XIII watches Reeve silently. o O ( Being in this place makes my
skin crawl.. )
Athan> Rachel heads towards the press hall.
Masaji> Rachel comes in from the lobby.
Masaji> Red XIII glances towards Rachel as she enters as well.
Athan> Aoshi enters the building, and the glass doors shut quietly.
Athan> Aoshi has arrived.
Masaji> Sana_Kurata has connected.
Masaji> everyone runs for their life
Tseng> You offer to lead Cloud.
Masaji> Kaia looks over at Rachel, then at Red. She hmms, then turns to head
back and away through the people again.
Athan> Aoshi Shinomori walks quietly through, his strides purposeful.
Athan> Aoshi heads towards the press hall.
Masaji> Aoshi comes in from the lobby.
Masaji> Rachel looks around, her lips quirking like she just tasted something
sour . o O ( I'm crazy..completely nuts.. Oh well, I see Red over there.. )
Athan> Athan hands Aoshi his free T-shirt! ^_^
Masaji> Rin looks around the room again.
Athan> Athan missed ;_;
Masaji> Saitou eyes suddenly focus on the new arrival.
Masaji> Rachel walks over and sits down, resting a hand on Red's neck, "You
hungry too..?" She winks before facing front
Masaji> Red XIII . o O ( I'm crazy. Completely nuts. )
Masaji> Saitou mumbles, "Looks like ... ....... paid ... .." to Rin.
Masaji> Burn watches Aoshi enter from the Lobby...
Masaji> Aoshi Shinomori steps in, looking about the room. He remains completely
expressionless, his eyes cool and dispassionate.
Masaji> Rin mumbles, "..... .. .. .. .. .. .." to Saitou.
Masaji> Red XIII glances over at Rachel, grinning as he growls a response,
"Free food. I could not pass it up."
Masaji> Masaji watches idly... many threats, but they aren't stupid enough to
start something
Masaji> Rin turns and narrows her eyes at Aoshi.
Masaji> Astraea glances around quietly.
Masaji> Saitou mumbles, "The man who .... ....... .." to Rin.
Masaji> Reeve stands by one wall, looking tired. . o O ( I really don't need
this tonight... )
Masaji> Rin nods to Saitou, keeping her eyes on Aoshi.
Masaji> Heidegger waves to Reeve. "Over here, you...! We got our own table!"
Masaji> Burn shifts glances between Rin, Saitou, and Aoshi...
Masaji> Burn . o O ( I wonder what those three have in common... )
Masaji> Aoshi Shinomori, his gaze slowly looking about, focuses suddenly upon
Rin and Saitou. His eyes narrowing fractionally, he meets Saitou's gaze.
Masaji> Saitou drops the cigarette he was smoking, and grinds it beneath his
shoes.
Masaji> Astraea glances towards the newcomer. o O ( Wai *.* Oh wait. Hmf. ) she
looks forward again.
Masaji> Rin just watches quietly.
Masaji> Burn turns his head to look at Kaia...
Masaji> Reeve sighs, then heads over towards Heidegger. "Thank you,
Heidegger..." . o O ( ...you bloody idiot. )
Masaji> Owen walks in.
Masaji> Owen has arrived.
Masaji> Kaia is just weaving in and out between the people for the most part.
Not saying anything, just....mingling. She's not good at this yet.
Masaji> Heidegger . o O ( That stupid wimp. Hmmph. You'd almost think he didn't
even LIKE the company /.= )
Masaji> Rachel looks over at Owen and seems to shrink down into her seat a
little >.>
Masaji> Red XIII pulls his tail in uner his paw, watching people coming in.
Masaji> *stomp* *meow!*
Masaji> Aoshi Shinomori suddenly turns away from Saitou, his expression
unchanging except perhaps just the barest glint of amusement upon his lips. He
continues to look about the room slowly as though looking for someone, or
something..
Tseng> Cloud has decided to follow you.
Masaji> Astraea strettches and tugs at her glove absently, glancing from person
to person to thing to person..
t o
Tseng> Shinra Tower: Research Level
Tseng> Hojo's lab is a massive research center, where a skilled scientist can
do almost anything. It's divided into two floors; the second one can be reached
by a service elevator in the back of the lab.
Tseng> The first floor is split up into three areas. The middle is where a
person enters from the elevator, and is mostly just a hallway leading to the
working parts of the lab. There are a few security stations, but no actual lab
equipment.
Tseng> The area to the right contains 'cages' that look much more like prison
cells. One cell is set back into a room of its own, with a high-security door
blocking the way. A hall from the center area leads over to the left, and
through it to the service elevator for the second floor. Two security guards
are in place to screen everyone who heads down this way. Against the far left
wall, numerous crates of non-perishable goods are stacked, apparently with no
real thought as to order. Opposite the crates are refrigeration units, and
several tanks filled with a light green liquid.
Tseng> In between the coolers and the tanks, a specimen elevator is set up,
which leads down to a loading area far below, and up to the lab itself. The
walls and door of this elevator are always electrified when in use, and this
can be seen as a sheet of blue energy wrapping around it.
Tseng> [Exits : (S)ervice Elevator, (C)ell, and (E)levator ]
Tseng> [Things : Alpha Specimen Tank[Unlocked], and Incubator ]
Tseng> Cloud has arrived.
Tseng> Tseng enters with Cloud following behind.
Masaji> Saitou narrows his eyes, and starts toward Aoshi through crowd. A wolf
on the hunt.
Masaji> Owen looks at his watch.
t e
Tseng> The doors of the elevator quietly slide open, and you enter.
Tseng> Shinra Tower: Elevator
Tseng> From inside the glass elevator you can see the city spread out around
you. You notice a small keypad with numbers on it, which you can use to select
your floor.
Tseng> [Exits : (62)nd Floor, (69)th Floor, (50)th Floor, (67)th Floor,
(B)asement, (66)th Floor, (61)st Floor, and (Lob)by ]
Tseng> [Players : Lucrecia, and Sephiroth ]
Tseng> [Things : Sign ]
Tseng> Cloud has arrived.
Tseng> Tseng enters with Cloud following behind.
Tseng> Tseng steps into the elevator, a weary-looking but healthy Cloud behind
him
Masaji> Rude, when he thinks no one is looking, reaches into his jacket to pull
out a stoppered-flask. Opening it up, he takes a quick pull from the contents
before replacing the cap and moving it back to his coat. o O ( Why me. )
Tseng> Cloud steps in wearily, stretching sore muscles from long hours of
listlessness. His gaze takes in the contents of the room, until he spots
Sephiroth. His deep blue eyes widen in stunned disbelief. ".........."
Tseng> Lucrecia is standing, staring in shock at the other person in the
elevator. A calculator lies at her feet where she dropped it.
Tseng> Tseng hesitates. "... I don't believe you've met?"
Masaji> Aoshi Shinomori looks over his shoulder towards Saitou before turning
completely towards him. Unmoving, unchanging, he simply watches him.
Masaji> Masaji . o O ( ... Lovely crowd tonight. >.> )
Masaji> Rin tries to weave her way closer discretely, but totally fails to
be covert at all.
Tseng> Lucrecia's hand lowers slowly to her side. "Sephiroth?"
Masaji> The band changes to a more upbeat melody
Tseng> Sephiroth's eyes dart to Cloud, widening very slightly as if he'd not
seen him before. Or seen yet not known the nature of, the revelation before him.
Masaji> Rachel mumbles, "...... you holding .. .. I know you really ..... like
.... place .. .." to Red_XIII.
Masaji> Astraea . o O ( Well at least htey're not playing elevator music. -.- )
Tseng> Cloud whispers the name in an echo of Lucrecia's own voice, his eyes not
leaving Sephiroth. "Sephiroth..."
Masaji> Red_XIII mumbles, ".. .. Well ...... .. .. .. this very building .....
.. .... crawl .." to Rachel.
t ;hmms, saying without a hint of emotion, "Oh, I see you have met.
Tseng> Tseng hmms, saying without a hint of emotion, "Oh, I see you have met."
Masaji> Burn looks straight towards Masaji trying to get his attention.
Masaji> Owen is soon enough right by Red and Rachel... How'd he get there? o-o
"Good evening..."
Masaji> Masaji notices Burn, but being on duty, says nothing
Masaji> Kaia listens to the band a little bit, then steps out of the way of a
few people passing by, looking around her once again.
Masaji> Saitou stalks up to Aoshi, and comes to a stop in front of him. He
continues meeting Aoshi's gaze, his own unwavering.
Masaji> Red XIII mrrls at Owen in greeting, his tail twitching quietly.
Masaji> Burn slightly shifts his eyes towards Saitou's and Aoshi's direction...
Masaji> Rachel looks over her shoulder . o O ( Oh -lovely-.. ) She smiles
politely, "Good evening, Owen.. Decide to get out of the office for a while?"
Masaji> Astraea eyes Saitou and Aoshi o O ( Hm. Ex's? )
Masaji> Heidegger gnaws on a leg. You're not quite sure what it's from, but
it's a golden brown.
Masaji> Reeve listens to the music, and avoids looking at Heidegger. . o O (
I've got even more work I should be doing right now. I'm not going to get any
sleep at all tonight. -.- )
Masaji> Owen looks around the room slightly, and replies to Rachel, "I am
expecting trouble, actually."
Tseng> Tseng looks over at Cloud, then at the other two. "Well, are we all just
going to stand here, or should we actually get going?"
Masaji> Red XIII twitches his ear at Owen.
Tseng> The lids of Sephiroth's eyes fall closed and then open, twice hearing
the practised name, stirring within him that same unremembered familliarity. He
says nothing, however, "..."
Tseng> Tseng says, in a plain tone, to Cloud, "You are invited to tonight's
banquet, of course. It's open to everybody."
Tseng> Lucrecia takes a step forward, stiffly. "They...they said you were
dead..."
Masaji> Rachel murmurs softly, "Well, I don't plan on being part of it if
something happens.."
Tseng> Tseng . o O ( ... I was not informed of this. )
Masaji> Aoshi Shinomori's gaze is unwavering upon Saitou. Clearly, he shows no
hesitation or nervousness of any kind.. or any other emotion for that matter.
His eyes briefly pinpoint Rin within the crowd before turning back to Saitou
slowly, "... Have I business with the Shinsen Gumi I am not aware of?"
Masaji> Astraea turns her attention to Heidegger somewhat, idly wondering how
long it takes him to finish that leg and if he even swallows.
Masaji> Not long. He has big teeth.
Masaji> Rin . o O ( Shinsengumi....? )
Masaji> And an even bigger mouth.
Masaji> Burn walks over to where Masaji is....
Masaji> Burn whispers, "Know those two?" to you.
Tseng> There's a slight jostle as the elevator starts to move, upwards.
Masaji> Owen mumbles, "... miss ....... informed ....... ............. of his
......... .." to Rachel, and Red_XIII.
Masaji> You whisper, "Hmm? Not that I know of." to Burn.
Masaji> Red XIII mrrlfs? He looks sharply at Owen and Rachel with a frown.
Tseng> Cloud, blinking, suddenly turns to Tseng with a weary gaze. "... ...
what banquet?" . o O ( What is going -on- here..? )
Masaji> Red_XIII mumbles, "What condition would that .. .." to Rachel, and Owen.
Tseng> Sephiroth blinks down at the young scientist before him. Dead? He wants
to say. I'm very much alive. Whatever they told you, whoever 'they' might be,
are in error. He still says nothing, his face impassively cool. He turns back
toward the window, looking out.
Masaji> Rachel blinks and looks back with a frown o.o
Masaji> Burn mumbles, "Something up between them...." to you.
Masaji> Burn mumbles, "Something up between .... .. .. .. .." to Masaji.
Tseng> Tseng says, "We're having a public dinner to celebrate our company's
success"
Masaji> Saitou, equally emotionless, speaks, "Not the Shinsengumi. Those days
have past, just like the Oniwabanshuu should have been."
Masaji> Rachel mumbles, ".. .. I ... .... just ........ ... she ...... ...
anything .. .." to Owen, and Red_XIII.
Masaji> Kaia isn't really hearing a lot. She's not supposed to. She's just
supposed to be enjoying herself, darnit. The different people are looked at,
before she wanders to watch the band for a while.
Masaji> Owen 9-9 . o O ( Miss Inverse unfocused... typical )
Masaji> Red XIII mutters something under his breath.
Masaji> Burn . o O ( So....that guys Oniwahanshuu..... )
Masaji> Red_XIII mumbles, "You .... ......... then .." to Owen, and Rachel.
Masaji> Aoshi Shinomori's gaze seems unblinking as he responds to Saitou. "The
Oniwabanshu, fortunately, are not as weak as the Shinsen Gumi."
Masaji> Burn mumbles, "Would there any reason to be suspicious of those two?"
to you.
Masaji> Burn mumbles, "Would there any ...... to be suspicious of ..... ... .."
to Masaji.
Masaji> Rin listens in on Aoshi and Saitou.
Masaji> Masaji shrugs at Burn
Masaji> You mumble, "They wouldn't be stupid enough to start something. I hope."
to Burn.
Masaji> Masaji mumbles, "They wouldn't .. ...... enough to start something .. .
.... .." to Burn.
Tseng> Lucrecia says, "I'm....you wouldn't know me, though..." She looks down
at herself. . o O ( He's almost my age, even.... )
Masaji> Astraea isn't so crude as to blatantly stare at Aoshi or Saitou. Nor
would she be so crude as to drool. She is watching tho. Oh yeah she's watching
*.* *slap* ~.~
Tseng> The elevator comes slowly to a stop...
>The doors of the elevator quietly slide open, and you enter.
Tseng> Rufus_Shinra enters the elevator.
Shinra Tower: Elevator
From inside the glass elevator you can see the city spread out around you. You
notice a small keypad with numbers on it, which you can use to select your
floor.
[Exits : (62)nd Floor, (69)th Floor, (50)th Floor, (67)th Floor, (B)asement,
(66)th Floor, (61)st Floor, and (Lob)by ]
[Players : Cloud, Tseng(#1517XZ)(Pup), Lucrecia, and Sephiroth ]
[Things : Sign ]
Masaji> Burn mumbles, "They're aren't naive enough to start something here..."
to you.
Masaji> Burn mumbles, "They're ...... ..... ...... to ..... something .... ..
.. .." to Masaji.
Masaji> Owen keep using a low tone as he speaks to Rachel and Red, but is mostly
adressing Red, =Mister Strife's medical condition remains serious, and as I
commented to miss Inverse, the medical accomodations here are a step better
than a prison hospital.=
>Rufus Shinra looks the assembled group over. "The banquet IS downstairs, you
know." He takes a moment to brush a lock of hair from his eyes.
>Cloud's eyes narrow just a bit further as they fall upon Rufus. "Rufus.." he
mutters, clearly expecting some kind of reaction. Having none save concerning
the banquet, he blinks puzzledly. o O ( What's their game..? )
Masaji> Saitou seems to be amused. "Oh? It seems you were equally powerless to
stop the Ishinshi from taking Edo castle."
Masaji> Red XIII's ears lower at the information, as he looks down at his paws
silently.
>Rufus Shinra . o O ( Everything is going exactly as I planned... )
Athan> Lina_Inverse enters the building, and the glass doors shut quietly.
Athan> Lina_Inverse has arrived.
>Lucrecia spins around at the sound of Rufus' voice, wide-eyed. "...Banquet?"
Masaji> Rachel frowns and gives Red a gentle scritch, "I see.." u.u;
Athan> Athan hands Lina her free T-shirt ^_^
Athan> Lina waves to Athan as she jogs past, heading for the press hall.
Athan> Lina snags the T-shirt en passant. "Anything happen yet?"
Masaji> Reeve drums his fingers on the table...
Masaji> Red XIII growls quietly and huffs a sigh at the scritch. \.u
>Rufus Shinra raises an eyebrow. "Banquet. hmm, perhaps you have been sequestered
in that laboratory a tad too long..."
Masaji> Aoshi Shinomori's face remains generally impassive, although a
tightening of his eyes indicates the successful jab on Saitou's part. "Were
we.. allowed.. to defend Edo castle, the armies of the Ishinshi would have been
defeated with ease."
Masaji> Kaia looks up at the clock, then double-checks. . o O (...starting
late. I suppose it isn't a surprise.)
Masaji> Astraea lifts a hand to cover her mouth daintily as she yawns.
Masaji> Oh no, the banquet has started, the President has just not arrived
yet...
>Lucrecia blinkblinks, then finally makes the connection. "Banquet! Right,
that....I'm sorry, I was distracted..." . o O ( I was just seeing that, right?
Maybe I have been working too long... )
>Cloud's gaze remains fixed upon Rufus at this point, his mind whirling. "...
... Just like that...? I'm being released..?" . o O ( That can't be it...
that's not how Shinra works.. )
>Rufus Shinra says, a slight mocking hint to his tone. "Of course! We don't keep
prisoners..."
Masaji> Saitou frowns, "Either way, you have lost sight of your ideals now.
Unless kidnapping is a part of it."
Masaji> Rin sneaks closer to Aoshi and Saitou so she can hear better.
Lucrecia glances back over her shoulder toward Sephiroth, hesitantly.
Athan> Terra enters the building, and the glass doors shut quietly.
Athan> Terra has arrived.
>Rufus Shinra turns to Sephiroth. "And i'm surprised you made it safely..."
Athan> Lina_Inverse heads towards the press hall.
Masaji> Lina_Inverse comes in from the lobby.
Masaji> Astraea scowls slightly at Rin. o O ( Damnit. Now why didn't *I* think
of that. )
Athan> Athan hands Terra her T-shirt o.o;
Masaji> Lina looks around ...
Masaji> Red XIII glances towards Lina.
Masaji> Rachel looks over and waves politely at Lina, sitting by Red and Owen..
Masaji> Kaia looks up at Lina, then back down again.
>Lucrecia stares again. . o O ( He _is_ real... )
Athan> Terra blinks, and looks over to Athan slowly blinking again. o.o;
".....Huh?"
Masaji> Lina heads over to Red and Owen and Rachel, looking around further ...
Masaji> Burn glances at Lina..
Masaji> Aoshi Shinomori finally blinks, an expression of puzzlement touching
his eyes as he meets Saitou's gaze. This lasts only a brief instant however,
quickly passing as he responds in an all too calm voice. "You refer to the
Kamiya girl then? I have heard she is... missing."
Athan> Athan says, "Your free T-shirt. You ARE attending the banquet? o.o;"
Masaji> Rin . o O ( Because you took her! )
>Sephiroth watches the city ascend, he turns to Rufus and nods, but his verdant
eyes fall behond him, to Cloud, and spreading on his lips is a smile meant for
him, cold, secreted..
Athan> Terra blinks for a moment, and then nods.
"Uh..uhm...Yeah...Err..Thanks." She looks at the T-shirt slowly for a moment,
and murmurs, "Uhm...I think I'll go on in now...Thanks..o.o;"
>Rufus Shinra pushes the button for the lobby. "Now now, don't stand around with
your mouthes hanging open, try to be a little formal."
Athan> Terra heads towards the press hall.
Masaji> Terra comes in from the lobby.
Masaji> Red XIII doesn't comment towards Lina, absently glancing towards the
front of the room.
Masaji> Astraea leans against her chair, staring at the opposite direction
Terra enters in. o O ( Yawwwwn. )
Masaji> Rachel looks past Lina and sighs pensively . o O ( Things just keep
getting better and better.. u.u )
Masaji> Reeve looks at his watch. . o O ( I hate company functions. )
Masaji> Lina asks, "Rachel, Red, Owen ... how're you three?"
Masaji> Terra pushes her way through slowly after her long walk in. She slowly
gazes about the room after while not noticing Astraea is around. She finds a
seat a few minutes later, and sits down......beside Astraea, still not noticing
she is there.
Masaji> Saitou notices Aoshi's expression, but he continues anyways, "I have
reason to believe that her disappearance is linked to the Oniwabanshuu..."
Masaji> Owen greets Lina first of the three, "Quite well, miss Inverse, I would
be expecting some trouble, can I have your assurance you shan't take part in
it?"
Masaji> The music, while nice, seems to fade into all the background chatter.
Every so often a camera flash goes off.
>Cloud watches Rufus's back, frowning in puzzlement. o O ( Why has he changed...
this makes no sense... ). Turning, he meets Sephiroth's eyes suddenly, his own
widening as he meets that gaze. o O ( Sephiroth... *here*... )
Masaji> Red XIII mrrls quietly, letting Lina take his answer as she will,
watching everything quietly.
Masaji> Lina says, "Depends on who does the initial making ... c'mon, Owen, you
know what my 'job' here is."
Masaji> Owen is a professionnal asshole, don't try this at home...
>Lucrecia asks, "You....are Sephiroth, right?"
Masaji> Rachel forces a smile, "Rather well, Lina, just waiting to get some of
the food.."
Masaji> Burn glances at Terra just entering....
Masaji> Lina (OOC) chortles, and toasts Owen. ^_-
Masaji> Rachel (OOC) says, "Did you go to school for that? You must have a
degree.."
Masaji> Owen (OOC) Naah, I just make sure I follow some of Henry Peter Gyrich's
principles.
Masaji> Astraea absently turns her head and spies Terra.. and just blinks, for
once at a loss. Ah to leap over the seat and beat the little girl's head in or
to make nice nice... what a dilemma!
Masaji> Aoshi Shinomori simply comments to Saitou in response, neither
confirming nor denying the subtle accusation. "... Is that so?"
>Rufus Shinra asks, "Now then, why don't we all enjoy dinner?"
>Tseng says, "..."
>Cloud says, "... ... ..."
>Cloud . o O ( Nothing to do but play along... )
>Sephiroth remains stone silent, "...."
>Lucrecia has decided to follow you.
Masaji> Saitou says, "That is."
Masaji> Lina studies Red's expression for a moment, trying to translate the
mrrrl from earlier.
>Lucrecia says, distantly, "Hai..."
>Terra pages, "Just work around it. ^_^ Accidents do happen. :)" to you.
Masaji> Red XIII has a neutral expression, offering no clues for lina.
Masaji> Terra, though, doesn't notice Astraea juuuuuuust yet. She just gazes
forward towards the crowd quietly, as her usual self within the background.
** Here, I get bumped. **
Masaji> Aoshi Shinomori replies to Saitou simply, a faintly sardonic smile
almost touching his lips. "Why would the Oniwabanshu deal with such trash that
belongs to Battousai?"
Masaji> Rachel looks around and finally spots Terra..and her expression just
shifts to 'VERY nervous' when she sees who's sitting next to her . o O ( Meep..
o.o; )
Masaji> Terra's eyes blink for a moment as she slowly starts to turn her head
over towards Astraea. "Good evene--" she BLINKS again at who is there,
"..Go...go..good...Eve.. even... evening..o.o;;;;"
Masaji> Astraea expected that. She firmly places her hand against Terra's arm
and giggles softly, "Nonono sweetie, calm down.. I'm not going to do anything
to you." She smiles with an almost predatory look on her face, and witholds the
'yet'.
Masaji> Astraea gestures with a hand, "I'm just here to enjoy myself, have a
bit to eat and see what all the ruckus is about..same as anyone else."
Masaji> Kaia glances towards the nervous look, and narrows her eyes a little
bit. . o O (....there's going to be trouble)
Masaji> Owen keeps an eye out for trouble... Of course he expected said trouble
to come from Lina or Red... Just _now_ he notices Saitoh. His gaze not quite as
unemotional as Aoshi, he narrows his eyes slightly... Out of that trio, who's
the good, the bad and the cop?
Masaji> Lina wanders around, scoping out the Shinra execs and personnel with
whom she's not yet familiar ...
Masaji> Astraea looks purrrfectly harmless. Really!
Masaji> Terra's eyes blink again, as she sinks slightly into her seat.
"Err...uhm...Uh...ha...hai.. Uh...yeah.. Err...o.o;;;" . o O ( ........Why did
I sit here of all places?! )
Masaji> Lina walks over to Heidegger. "I don't think I've met you yet ..."
Masaji> Ginrei toys with one of her earrings, a dangling crimson sphere.
Masaji> Rin approaches Saitout and Aoshi.
Masaji> Kaia mumbles something like 'better that way' as Lina passes.
Masaji> Astraea smiles at Terra, wrinkling her nose slightly, "So, sweetie..
how have you been?"
>Rufus Shinra says, "Now then, Cloud, why not sit at the shinra table? You are
in unifrom, sort of, after all..."
Masaji> Lina glances at Kaia, not recognizing her, then looks back at Heidegger.
Masaji> Burn mumbles, "You enjoying this?" to you.
Masaji> Burn mumbles, "You enjoying .... .." to Masaji.
Masaji> You mumble, "... yeah right." to Burn.
Masaji> Masaji mumbles, ".. .. .. yeah right .." to Burn.
>Lucrecia is too caught up with Sephiroth still to wonder why the terrorist is
being invited to sit at the Shinra table.
>Rufus Shinra has plans, obviously...
Masaji> Reeve is sitting at the same table as Heidegger, and looks up at Lina
with a pleading look in his eyes. . o O ( Oh please, please, please give me an
excuse to get away from Heidegger. o.o )
Masaji> Saitou grins wolfishly, "Well, there was the gentleman that dropped by
the police station a while back, informing me of a disturbance at the Kamiya
Dojo. I don't suppose he's one of the Oniwabanshuu?"
Masaji> Burn watches Terra and Astraea...
Masaji> Aoshi Shinomori tilts his head fractionally as he regards Saitou. "Why
is that, do you think?"
Masaji> Terra's eyes blink slightly for a moment again, while sweatdropping
ever so slightly. "Err... M-me? U..uhm.. I.. I ...am.. f-fine. Err.."
>Cloud is silent, his thoughts racing at Rufus's question. Finally he asks
slowly, carefully, "... Why, Rufus?"
Masaji> Rin appears next to Aoshi and Saitou having weaved her way through the
crowd. "Stop it!"
>Rufus Shinra says, in an intentionally patronizing and demeaning tone, "Why
not."
Masaji> Burn mumbles, "Hey...would you happen to know that girl over there?" to
you.
Masaji> Burn mumbles, "... .. .. .. ..... ... ...... to .... that .... over
..... .." to Masaji.
Masaji> Masaji hmms?
Masaji> Saitou says, "From the moment I saw him I knew he wasn't a normal
person. Then there was the description Battousai gave."
>Cloud says, "... ... You've tried attacking us, so many times before.."
pausing, he rubs the back of his head awkwardly, "... What's changed?"
Masaji> Masaji hmms again...
Masaji> Astraea's jade eyes lift and slide towards Burn, her sweet smile
shifting to a scowl of disgust as she reaches an arm up and slips it around
Terra's shoulders, ..almost in a choke hold if she were being more forceful,
leveling a cold look towards Burn, as if saying 'Do you mind? I'm talking with
my dear dear *DEAR* friend. Go putter about amongst the snackfoods.' and eases
her grip on Terra, pulling away like the girl was contaminated with the Black
plague.
Masaji> You mumble, "A while back..." to Burn.
Masaji> Masaji mumbles, ". while .... .. .. .." to Burn.
Masaji> Astraea patspatSLAMS Terra on the back with a smile, "That's WONDERFUL
to hear, DEAR."
Masaji> Rachel looks over . o O ( She's putting on quite an act.. -.- )
>Rufus Shinra says, as the elevator continues it's painfully slow descent,
"We're winning, Cloud. There's no reason to attack now."
Masaji> Burn narrows his eyes slowly, watching Astraea..
Masaji> Burn mumbles, "She's in trouble...." to you.
Masaji> Burn mumbles, "She's .. trouble .. .. .. .." to Masaji.
Masaji> Aoshi Shinomori's eyes pointedly turn away from Saitou to regard Rin,
".....And you are?" he asks in his quiet, cool voice.
Masaji> Astraea smiles acidly towards Burn, then laces her fingers together and
leans back to regard Terra again.
Masaji> Rin doesn't stop to think but makes up an excuse on the spot. She
gestures at Saitou. "I'm his bodyguard."
Masaji> Ginrei . o O ( Interesting crowd, but this isn't exactly the hothouse I
heard it'd be. )
Masaji> Terra dips her head slightly forward, while Astraea's arm is around her
neck slightly for a moment. She slowly closes her eyes after, and she sighs
faintly. She then blinks for a moment while she gets patted on the back,
"Ha..hai--OW!" she yelps out in pain from the HARD smack by Astraea.
>Rufus Shinra turns to face the elevator doors. "Would should be arriving
shortly, make up your mind. Lucrecia, Sephiroth, you will attend."
Masaji> Red XIII glances at Rachel questioningly.
Masaji> Astraea blinks at Terra, "Oh my! Did I hurt you? I'm *SO* sorry
sweetie.."
Masaji> Burn mumbles, "I'll be right back..." to you.
Masaji> Burn mumbles, ".... .. right .... .. .. .." to Masaji.
Masaji> Saitou turns back to look as Rin as well, "This is no place for you."
Masaji> Astraea mumbles, "....... you know .. ..... .. .. . really WOULD ....
.. ... .... pain .. .. .." to Terra.
Masaji> Lina looks at Reeve. "How're you?"
Masaji> Astraea pats Terra gently on the shoulder and smiles.
Masaji> It's not a friendly smile.
Masaji> Kaia just watches the pair of women, shaking her head slightly at them.
Masaji> Rin frowsn at Saitou. "I can't leave you to get in trouble by yourself."
Masaji> Burn slowly pushes through the crowds towards where Astraea and Terra
is...
Masaji> Heidegger hrrumphs at Lina, but manages to salvage enough tact not to
comment
Masaji> Reeve says, "Tired. And I should be working, so I can actually get some
sleep tonight. But instead, I'm here."
Masaji> Suddenly, there's the sound of running feet, as though a stampede were
approaching.....
>Lucrecia says, "Right...."
Masaji> Red XIII twitches his ear at the sound.
>Cloud . o O ( Winning..... perhaps... they are at that... )
Masaji> Burn . o O ( What now? )
Masaji> Lina looks towards the door, her hand flexing ...
>Rufus Shinra says, "Yes or no? My patience isn't infinite..."
Masaji> Reeve . o O ( ...What's that? )
Masaji> Owen . o O ( They opened the door to the press? )
Masaji> Astraea arches an eyebrow slightly, glancing towards the door briefly.
Cloud speaks quietly, "... ... I'll attend then." . o O ( If only to learn what
they're planning... )
Masaji> Kaia looks over at the door, then makes sure she's well out of the way
of it.
Masaji> Terra's eyes blink again at Astraea while she sighs softly once more,
dipping her head forward even more. Of course her face is filled with guilt for
some reason, though. (OOC: ROTFL at Red) She sighs softly, before she clamps
her eyes shut when hearing the mumble by Astraea while her face slightly pales.
. o O ( ...... )
>Rufus Shinra manages a sinister smirk. "Very well then."
Masaji> Lina starts sidling back through the crowd, towards Owen, whilst
keeping at least half an eye on the door ...
Masaji> Sana-chan burst into the room... her arms thrown before her screaming
"AIEEEEEEEEEEEE! I'm LAAAAAAAAAAAAAATE!!!!!!!!" A few feet past the door, she
stomps right on Red's tail, tripping and flying towards Terra...
>lob
You reach your floor, and the elevator doors open.
Shinra Tower: Lobby
Entering through the sliding glass doors, you find yourself in the lobby of one
of the most powerful commercial entities known. To your either side of you is a
desk with a receptionist, waiting for you to make an appointment. Further down
you see the Shinra corporate logo, and beyond that, a display featuring SEC
(Shinra Electric Corp) cars. Some glass elevators are located on the right wall.
[Exits : (P)ress Hall, (E)levator, and (O)ut ]
[Players : Athan(#1752XZ)(Pup) ]
[Things : None ]
Masaji> Lina has one comment: "..................................." o.o;;
Masaji> Reeve O.o
>Sephiroth has decided to follow you.
Masaji> Ginrei . o O ( I think I'll keep an eye on things outside. It's too hot
in here, anyway... )
Masaji> Ginrei heads back to the lobby.
Athan> Ginrei comes in from the press hall.
Masaji> Red XIII jerks up and lets out a ROAR of pain as his tail gets
CRUSHED, scrambling away
Athan> Ginrei heads outside.
Masaji> Rude says, "......"
Masaji> Masaji says, "....."
Masaji> Rachel eeeps! "Red!" o.o
Masaji> Rin blinks.
Masaji> Astraea stares at Sana and sweatdrops slightly, immediately leaning
BACK to avoid the incoming girl
Masaji> Burn gets through the crowd and finally arrives near Terra and Astraea
while everyone watches the door.
Masaji> Terra doesn't notice Sana flying towards her unfortunatly, as she is
SLAMMED into by her. X.X Boy, this girl has SO much luck.
Masaji> Red XIII groans and crawls under a chair where he'll be safe.
Masaji> Astraea BURSTS into laughter, "WOW! Dead on!"
Masaji> Astraea gets up out of her chair and pulls both girls up ^^
Masaji> Sana-chan settles nicely upside down on top of Terra, her dress up
above her head. Fortunately for her, she's wearing those nice Hello Kitty Gym
Shorts underneath her lovely blue dress. "Itai..." @.@ as she gets pulled back
up by Astrea.
Masaji> Burn blinks at what just happened....
Masaji> Lina asks, "Need your tail bandaged, Red?"
Masaji> Astraea snerks and sets Sana in the chair opposite hers, "You okay Kid?"
Masaji> Rachel looks over at the crash scene . o O ( Eep, Terra got it worse..
o.o; )
>Lucrecia comes out of the elevator.
>Tseng comes out of the elevator.
>Cloud comes out of the elevator.
Masaji> Astraea sets Terra back in HER chair too, quickly brushing her off.
Masaji> Kaia looks down at Sana, then back up at Masaji again, with an almost
pleading look. . o O (_Please_ say we have a reason to oust her?)
Masaji> Masaji sighs ;_;
>Sephiroth comes out of the elevator.
Masaji> Terra is impacted into the ground though, but she is slowly pulled up
by the two, and she blinks at Astraea for a moment. o.o; . o O ( Why is she
actually helping me up? I thought she lived to see me hurt. )
Masaji> Red XIII scowls at Lina, "That is unnecessary," he chuckles slightly,
tucking his tail away.
Masaji> Sana-chan blinkblinkblinks, nodding up at the two Astreas, holding her
head. @.- "Iie... am I on time?" she squeaks, bobbing her head side to side.
Masaji> The band dies down all of a sudden...
Masaji> Rachel has disconnected.
Masaji> Masami falls asleep.
>p
Masaji> Rufus_Shinra comes in from the lobby.
Tseng> Rufus_Shinra has left.
Athan> Rufus_Shinra has left.
Press hall(#1795RJ)
This is a cavernous room that can, and does, easily seat several thousand
people. The walls are a drab grey, as if the room was quickly hacked out of a
warehouse. Several propaganda posters and banners for the Corporation ("Shinra
brings the World into a New Age!") attempt to make it less drab, and work for
the most part.
Several dozen long tables are placed throughout the area, each seating 30 or 40
people. A massive buffet-style bar is placed near the entrance, but those with
money to spare can order fresher and more exotic fares. Opposite the entrance
is a raised platform with a singe long table on it, where the Shinra executives
sit. Oddly, there's no visible security measures for the executives... they
must have great faith in their guards.
[Exits : (O)ut ]
[Players : Terra, Lina_Inverse, Owen(Pup), Aoshi(Pup), Reeve(Pup), Red_XIII,
Rin, Saitou, Astraea, Burn, Masaji(#1547XZ)(Pup), Kaia(Pup), Sana_Kurata,
Rude(Pup), and Heidegger(Pup) ]
[Sleepers: Rachel, and Masami(Pup) ]
[Things : None ]
>Burn hmmms...
>Lucrecia comes in from the lobby.
>Astraea smiles simply at Terra, then looks up, "Hey looks like the show's
starting."
>Cloud comes in from the lobby.
>Sephiroth comes in from the lobby.
>Astraea levels a dark look at Burn.
>Reeve sees Sephiroth. O.O
>Lucrecia walks in beside Sephiroth, watching him like she was....well, seeing a
ghost.
>Kaia looks up and *startles* at the figures she sees coming in. O_O
>Lina looks back at the door ...
>Burn returns Astraea with a fiery glance..
>Red XIII stares at the incoming.
>Rufus Shinra walks in, to the cheers and applause of his staff. The room is
brighetend by a deluge of camera flashes as he makes his way towards the Shinra
table, waving at the crowd...
>Astraea narrows her eyes at Burn and flips a finger at him, "Get lost."
>Sana-chan beams, and wavies at Rufus and Spikey-man and the long-haired man. ^_^
>Aoshi Shinomori replies quietly to Rin, his tone seemingly amused. "The Shinsen
Gumi require bodyguards now...?" His gaze turns towards the newcomers
afterwards..
>Red XIII . o O ( *SSCREEEEECCRASH* )
>Lina . o O ( Hoo boy ... what's Sephiroth doing here? Is Shabranigdo going to
show up too? )
>The band plays a triumphant march! Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to echo the
sentiments of some of those attending...
>Rin's answer to Aoshi is drowned out by the commotion.
>Burn ignores what Astraea says and turns his head to Terra with a smile on his
face, "Are you alright miss?"
>Heidegger blinks /.O
>Lina heads over to the new arrivals, nodding respectfully to Rufus and
Sephiroth ... and sizing Cloud up. "You're looking well, Cloud."
>Saitou scowls.
>Astraea . o O ( Dweeb. )
>Cloud walks behind Rufus, Sephiroth and Lucrecia... his eyes widening at the
obvious crowd. Blinking, he turns towards Lina, nodding slowly to her and
rubbing the back of his head awkwardly at the unusual situation. "... ... ..."
>Rufus Shinra takes the central seat at the Shinra table. His 'associates'
follow...
>Owen does notice Cloud, and a lot less wounded than he should be, "..."
>Terra's eyes slowly gaze up after giving Burn a sympethetic look. Well, Terra
is a caring person, ne? So, of course she would. Although, she blinks after,
looking at him afterwards, "Uhm...Ye..yes.. I.. I'm fine." . o O ( Although,
now I have a pounding headache. ) After, she gazes slowly towards the three
afterwards, blinking after. . o O ( Who are they? *blink* Lina... called him
Cloud? Wait.. That person I heard talked of a long time ago? But.. I thought
he was against Shinra? )
>Lina makes a mental note to debrief Cloud later, in detail, and heads back
towards Owen, Red, and Rachel.
>Red XIII just stares at Cloud o O ( .... )
>Burn hmms as he looks to the Shin-ra excutives...
>Astraea crosses her legs and smirks towards Terra faintly.
>Sana-chan blinkblinkblinks at Cloud, still holding her head.
>Lucrecia looks out at the crowd, briefly. She is clearly stunned by all of
this, but not too far gone any more. "Quite a gathering..."
>Sephiroth walks at an easily graceful stride, flashbulbs flaring against his
eyes and splashing his hair, as he heads for the table, taking a seat to Rufus'
immediate right.
>Cloud continues to glance around, his gaze settling upon Red. His eyes widen,
and he nods curtly to him as though to say he's alright. The confusion shone
within his eyes, however, might say otherwise.
>Lina_Inverse mumbles, "What's ..... doing .... .. .. .. ... intact .."
to Red_XIII.
>Reeve sits at the Shinra table, staring at Sephiroth as he walks over and sits
down. . o O ( ...What's he doing here?? )
>Owen . o O ( Why are there _so_ many prophecies of the world's end next year...
o-o; )
>Kaia is looking about as stunned as most of the people,
just....watching...Sephiroth go to the table. . o O (All of a sudden, I'm sorry
I'm not on-duty...)
>Burn glances at Astraea and looks at Terra once again, "You sure you're
alright?"
>Red XIII just focuses his attention on Cloud. It's not as if he could answer
Lina's question anyway.. his tail waves slightly in acknowledgement, but he's
watching Cloud and Seph very carefully.
>Astraea smirks at Sana
>Rin . o O ( Why did they have to show up now... we were just about to find out
something! )
>Astraea mumbles, "I ..... ...... the "In" ......... ... men nowadays
hon .. .." to Sana_Kurata.
>Cloud, hesitating clearly, slowly sinks down into the seat on the other side of
Rufus. o O ( Maybe I'll learn -something- useful here... )
>Rufus Shinra taps the mike a bit as his 'allies' take their respective seats.
>Astraea glances towards CLoud, then the other attendees. o O ( *.* Oh ya, the
wait was worth it. )
>Terra's eyes blink for a moment at Burn, and she nods towards him slowly, as
she forces a soft smile on herself, "I'm fine. Thank you, though."
>Aoshi Shinomori watches, his eyes cold and expression as though set in stone.
>Sana-chan blinks, looking up at Rufus. She beams, standing up on her chair and
waving. "HIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII, Mr Shinra! Remember me?!"
>Aoshi Shinomori . o O ( So that's the president of Shinra... the Yakuza would
be grateful indeed for him as a prize... )
>Lucrecia sits next to Sephiroth. <.<
>Astraea absently reaches up to keep Sana from falling off her chair.
>Rufus Shinra winces as Sana's yell is amplified by the mike into a cacophonous
wail around the chamber. O.o;
>Astraea SWEATDROPS and rubs at her ears.
>You mumble, "Can we talk after I give my speech?" to Sana_Kurata.
>Rufus_Shinra mumbles, "... .. talk ..... . .... my ...... .." to
Sana_Kurata.
>Red XIII covers his ears with both paws. \.x o O ( Well at least she didn't see
me. )
>Owen clenches his teeth some more... x-x
>Cloud says, "..........."
>Sana-chan blinkblinks. "SURE! ^_^" She squirms back down into her seat, beaming
happily.
>Cloud . o O ( Who -is- that... )
>Kaia rubs at her ears, wincing.
>Reeve flinches at the hideous sound.
>Lina has been around Naga's laugh ... a yelling Sana doesn't bother her as much
as it might some people. o.o;;
>Astraea chuckles at Sana. When she can hear again.
>Burn nods to Terra, "If you say so..." before leaving, he looks to Astraea with
a fiery glow in his eyes....then slowly walks away..
>Lucrecia covers her ears, shrinking down in her seat.
>Astraea ignores Burn, watching Sana bemusedly.
>Rufus Shinra coughs. "My apologies for my lateness, but i had some last minute
to attend to..." He smiles (an obvious fake media smile) as hs words are
amplified across the large room
>Terra's eyes blink slightly at the yell, while she rubs her ears slightly
after. o.o;;;; . o O ( Ow. >.< She may be a child, but someone should put a
lock on that mouth of hers. )
>Sana_Kurata mumbles, "*giggle* This .. ... .. ... ... .. .... .." to
Astraea.
>Burn . o O ( Freaky lady... )
>Rin looks annoyed that the presentation started.
>Sana_Kurata mumbles, "............ .. .. .. .... ... ... .. ." to
Astraea.
>Astraea laughs quietly at Sana and ruffles her hair lightly, before responding.
>Astraea mumbles, "*chuckle* My .... is Astraea .. .... .. a .......
on .... .. ... company .. .. as for the ...... .. well . imagine
..... .... ... .." to Sana_Kurata.
>Red XIII crawls forward just slightly of his shelter to get a better view of
the group at the front of the room.
>Sana-chan beaaaaaaaams at Astrea. "I'm Sana!" Then she immediately quiets down
at a look from Rufus. o.O
>Lucrecia takes a deep breath, and looks studiously down at the table in front
of her.
>Rufus Shinra pauses once more as flash photography fills the chamber again.
When it dies down, he continues. "I would like to thank you all for attending,
because without you, our loyal customers, we wouldn't be what we are today..."
Oddly, some of you might pick up a little sarcasm in the second sentence...
>Terra gazes slightly over towards Astraea and Sana for a brief moment, as a
slight discomfort suddenly overwhelms her there. . o O ( .....I wonder how a
child can like her come to think of it, actually. )
>Astraea grins, "Nice to meet you Sana-chan." She chuckles, then smirks absently
as she looks towards the front of the room.
>Lina looks around. . o O ( Loyal customers? Where? )
>Cloud's blue eyes dart towards Rufus a moment.. a glint of something showing
within them, curiosity perhaps.. animosity certainly. o O ( What's he up to
now... )
>Owen . o O ( Hmm-hm, a spike at the terrorist attacks causing the legalization
of Soldier... )
>Red XIII growls under his breath.
>Reeve . o O ( ...He's got to be crazy if he thinks he can get away with riling
up this crowd. )
>Rufus Shinra continues, with a clear tone, perfectly fit for public speaking.
"I would like to announce that, in this time of global economic crisis, Shinra
Electric Power Corporation has increased in profitability by 20% since the
start of the year!" He raises his hand for dramatic effect, and there's more
camera flashes.
>Sana-chan blinks, beaming up at Rufus, applauding!
>Astraea's gaze slides towards Terra, regarding her out of the corner of her eye
as she smirks still, arms crossed.
>Lucrecia . o O ( He was dead, they all said it... )
>Burn . o O ( He's Cloud? )
>Terra just looks towards Rufus now for a bit, as she listens in. . o O ( ..... )
>Rufus Shinra lowers his arm, crossing it in front of our chest. "And while,
unfortunately, we have been unable to determine why we have been the victim of
so many attacks, I would like to PERSONALLY thank my security staff for keeping
Shinra employees from danger." He extends his hands to the side - to Cloud and
Sephiroth - cueing them to take a bow.
>Kaia applauds Rufus' words, but she's still somewhat...distracted. Ok, more
like *tense*
>Lina . o O ( Chotto matte ... *CLOUD* works for Shinra now?! )
>Sana-chan applauds uproariously, cheering with all the gusto of an high school
cheerleader now.
>Red XIII growls quietly o O ( WHAT THE *E(&$@ IS HE TALKING ABOUT? )
>Owen arches a brow and sloops his shoulders at _that_ ... sweatdrops too . o O
( I must admit this comes as a surprise ) O-o;
>Rin taps her foot, looking bored with the whole thing.
>Astraea . o O ( Hrm.. if all their employees like that, I think I should put in
my resume *.* Stop it Astra. x.x )
>Reeve . o O ( Cloud's working for Shinra?! I should've heard at least a little
bit about this. o.o )
>Cloud doesn't take the bow. Indeed, if anything, his eyes harden to seemingly
cold, twin glaciars of crystal-clear blue ice. The anger showing within them
is quite obvious by anyone close enough to notice. o O ( Why is he DOING this!?
)
>Terra . o O ( Cloud.... working for Shinra? I thought he was one of the good
guys. )
>Lucrecia blinks and sits straighter, seeming almost to wake up at that one. She
looks over to Rufus disbelievingly.
>Red XIII watches Cloud silently, growling quietly.
>Astraea narrows her eyes absently as she covers her smirk with a hand.
>Lucrecia . o O ( Cloud...working for Shinra? I thought he was one of the bad
guys. )
>Lina quietly stands up, and starts working her way around the edge of the room,
towards the main table ... staying close to the wall, and hoping her height
will work to her advantage.
>Rufus Shinra watches the crowd, not his employees. He continues, "I would also
like to thank the Japanese government for working so closely with us to help
keep these awful terrorist acts down in our great city."
>Sephiroth serves Cloud a silent, definative glance out of the corner of his eye
as he takes a curt bow for the masses.
>Heidegger just... pauses. /.O
>Burn . o O ( Shinra's bad? good? What? )
>Sana-chan is completely oblivious to Cloud's rage, continuing to applaud
uproariously. Wow, if this keep up, she'll have to resort to cheering verbally
before her little hands hurt.
>Rude just STARES, his expression best defined as incredulous... were it seen
through the MIB glasses.
>Owen . o O ( You're very welcome... )
>Astraea reaches over and seizes Sana's hand.
>Burn . o O ( And why is that guy pissed? )
>Astraea mumbles, "..... .. .... a thing .. ........ .. sport .. :)"
to Sana_Kurata.
>Rufus Shinra raises both his hands now, as if signaling for the crowd to quiet
down. He says with a mock smile, "Now, of course, I can't just praise my
employees all night..." Stifled laughter from the crowd.
>Red XIII snorts.
>Lina . o O ( Sure you can, it's PRBS. )
>Sana-chan blinkblinks, then nods cheerfully at Astraea, before returning her
attention, for good or evil... er, bad, on Rufus.
>Terra doesn't laugh of course, she just slowly narrows her eyes towards Rufus
there. . o O ( ..... )
>Rufus Shinra continues, clasping his hands together before him, "...Even if
they are pretty good..." More applause.
>Astraea smiles and releases Sana's hands, glancing back towards Rufus with a
smirk.
>Reeve sits watching Cloud and Sephiroth, and trying to figure out what Rufus is
pulling here...
>Rufus Shinra extends his hands to the side, continuing with his mock mirth, "Aw
heck, they're the best in the business!" Rampant cheers. Those who know Rufus
will instant tell he's acting...
>Red XIII sweatdrops and growls quietly.
>Astraea . o O ( Who writes his dialogue.. ? They should be maimed. )
>Lina_Inverse whispers, "Lina_Inverse is now (hopefully) close enough to cast
Detect Magic ... *something* is amiss here, she's trying to figure out what.
(She can of course be *completely* on the wrong track here ;)" to Cloud, you,
Sephiroth and Lucrecia.
>Reeve was able to tell that from the start of the speech.
>You page, "No magic, above the usual faint trace of Mako around Seph and Cloud"
to Lina_Inverse, Cloud, Sephiroth and Lucrecia.
>Sana-chan . o O ( Wow, he sounds like Zenjiro-san. Without the buck teeth. ^_^ )
>Cloud . o O ( He's playing to the crowd.... I don't *believe* this... )
>Rufus Shinra . o O ( Useless sheep... at least they are easily led... )
>Red XIII glares at the front of the room.
>Sephiroth (OOC) I have to head out IRL. x.x I should be back in about half an
hour, I hope.
>Rufus Shinra puts his hands on the table. "Of course, I'd like to take this
opportunity to introduce our new Automotive and Aeronautics division..."
>Terra's eyes darken while she continues watching Rufus. You can tell she
doesn't like that fellow very much for some reason. But, then... I guess its
the same for everyone. Comes with Ruffles job.
>Astraea turns her attention to Terra.
>Cloud says, "..........."
>Lina_Inverse has disconnected.
>Terra is as before, Asta. Glaring _right_ at Ruffles with rage.
>Rufus Shinra notices the people glaring at him... there's quite a lot... but he
doesn't care... He keep smirking as a large display lowers from the ceiling,
and the lights dim just enough to make it quite visible in the back. The shinra
logo appears.
>Astraea blinks, her contemptuous smirk melting into a puzzled expression. o O (
Hrm. What's she so mad about? ) She blinks and looks back towards Rufus.
>Sana-chan quiets down, watching the movie.
>Burn . o O ( Geez...so much anger towards that guy... )
>Cloud turns in his seat just enough to watch the screen, his expression
darkening.
>Red XIII dittos with a similar expression. \.=
>Rufus Shinra turns to look at the monitor as a movie begins playing. It's of a
massive aircraft - simply huge - taxying down a runway and taking off. Rufus
narrates. "This is our Gelnika mark 2 class 'cargo' aircraft. Unusual in shape,
it can carry an impressive load over 15,000 miles without refuling. Once this
marvel of technology gets into mass production, the world of air cargo will be
changed forever!"
>Lucrecia turns, watching the screen, trying to sort herself out.
>Sana-chan watches with rapt attention, then waves her hand at Shinra, as she's
got a question! ^_^
>Terra gazes towards the screen slowly, as she frowns towards it. . o O ( I
wonder what he is really planning with it.... )
>Astraea watches the screen silently, jiggling her leg lightly.
>Burn . o O ( I wonder how much weapons he could carry with those... )
>Kaia watches the screen, eyebrows raising a bit. . o O (...it's huge. Is that
why they were looking for pilots?
>Rufus Shinra pauses as the scene fades into a sleek, if odd-looking, sports
car. "While our 'heretic' line of automobiles will redefine design in detroit
for years to come."
>Lucrecia . o O ( I hope this can draw some more piloting candidates. )
>Astraea . o O ( Snazzy. )
>Red XIII grumbles.
>Burn . o O ( I wonder how easily those things blow up also.... )
>Lucrecia manages finally to gain some semblance of normality, by thinking about
work. :)
>Sana-chan blinkblinks, then waves her hand some more.
>Astraea pokes Sana
>Astraea mumbles, "Hold .... questions ... ..... .." to Sana_Kurata.
>Sana-chan meeps, pulling her hand down.
>Astraea giggles
>Lina_Inverse has connected.
>Sana-chan . o O ( She's like Mama. O.o Wonder if she has a squirrel at home?
<.< )
>Rufus Shinra watches the monitor as the scene changes to an overhead view of a
shinra factory, hard at work. "As Shinra Automotive and Shinra Aeronautics come
to the forefront of their respective fields, we expect to creat at least 20,000
new jobs for the citizens of Japan."
>Terra . o O ( Or, 20,000 million shiny new gold coins all for Rufus. )
>Cloud mumbles, "...... ... plan now .. .. this isn't .... Shinra ..
... at all .. .. .. .." to Cloud.
>Red XIII twitches his ears absently.
>Burn . o O ( Pilots.... )
>Burn . o O ( Maybe I'll tell them I know how to fly a plane next... )
>Rufus Shinra clasps his hand to his chest as the scene changes to a view of
Shinra security recruits, in bright uniforms and trimmed hair... rather eerily
reminiscent of Nazi and Communist propaganda. "And working for Shinra's SOLDIER
program is the best way for a healty young student to earn money for college,
and have a promising carer."
>Lina . o O ( Always assuming that you don't get killed in the process ... )
Red XIII flattens his ears and snorts again.
>Astraea . o O ( Ick. )
>Sana-chan . o O ( Wai. *_* I wanna work for SOLDIER. *_* )
>Kaia raises a glass in her hand at that, though she gives the screen a somewhat
odd look. . o O (...yeah right...I _wish_ I looked that good...)
>Lina leans against the wall, watching Rufus and his 'colleagues', with half an
eye on the movie as well.
>In a page-pose to you, Terra WAIS! ^_^ "Good...The plan can go into motion. *_*"
>Astraea . o O ( Wai! *.* I wanna work for SOLDIER! *.* If only to see those
cute guys! *.* ..what'm I SAYING! I have better things to do.. still.. )
>Astraea sighs softly, then gives herself a mental shake. o O ( Get a grip. )
>Lina_Inverse pages, "(OOC) Those SOLDIER members in the movie ... do their eyes
glow, or would that not show up?" to you.
>Rufus Shinra extends his arms to the side as the film apparently comes to the
end, with a scene of Shinra Tower backlight by the rising sun. "It is a GREAT
year for Shinra!" Cheers throughout the audience.
>Sana-chan has the same look as Astraea, only her thoughts are more like . o O (
I wanna flyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy those biiiiiiiiiiig planes! )
>Terra does not notice Astraea drooling in the least bit, as she continues
glaring forward towards Rufus.
>Heidegger applauds sycophantically /.n
>Burn . o O ( Man...this is just like the same crap that Keith said.... )
>Cloud says, "... ..."
>Cloud . o O ( New recruits... the damage they could do here... )
>Reeve claps his hands just enough to be polite.
>Astraea doesn't drool! That'd be uncivilized. She does have stars in her eyes
for a second there though.
>Kaia claps at the movie's ending, nodding and smiling.
>Lina looks like she could do a good Zelgadis impression right about now,
leaning against the wall with her arms folded.
>Sana-chan applauds, standing up. "YAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYY! YOU GO, SHINRA!"
>Rufus Shinra clasps his hands together, wating for things to quiet down a tad
before continuing. "Now then, enjoy your dinner! There will be a question and
answer section afterwards." He flashes a mock smile. . o O ( Of course, I
will pick who asks the questions. )
>Cloud's eyebrow twitches at Sana's enthusiasm.. "......Great..." he mutters
lowly.
>Astraea sweatdrops and taps Sana again, "Settle down."
>Red XIII shakes his head.
>Sana-chan settles down, beaming happily.
>Lina unfolds her arms, walking over to Rufus-tachi's table. "Excuse me ... "
>Rufus Shinra takes his seat at the table, ignoring any immediate questions, and
begins his meal
>You mumble, "Can it wait?" to Lina_Inverse.
>Rufus_Shinra mumbles, "Can it .... .." to Lina_Inverse.
>Terra chooses to wait for now until the question and answer period comes
forward, as she just stares forward for the time being, well...actually,
glaring at Rufus, but.
>Lina didn't look like she was about to talk to *Rufus*; she's headed for
Cloud's place at that table, actually.
>Sana-chan starts gobbling her food happily, almost inhaling it the way the
legendary Lina Inverse eats. Well, except she uses a fork and knife properly,
like her Mama taught her to.
>Rufus Shinra doesn't seem to care about that distinction...
>Lina_Inverse mumbles, "I won't make trouble, I just have to ask Cloud a couple
of things." to you.
>Lina_Inverse mumbles, "I ..... .... ....... .. . .... have .. ...
Cloud . couple of things .." to Rufus_Shinra.
>Astraea blinks at Sana, chuckles faintly and eats at a more sedate pace.
>You mumble, "Patience, patience, you can talk to him after dinner." to
Lina_Inverse.
>Rufus_Shinra mumbles, "Patience .. patience .. you can talk .. him
..... ...... .." to Lina_Inverse.
>Lucrecia starts her meal, only partly paying attention. She glances over to
Sephiroth once more.
>Lina mutters something under her breath, and heads back to her table ... and
her meal. -.-
>Cloud, not even looking down at his food despite being quite hungry, meets
Lina's gaze with his cool, deep blue eyes. Frowning deeply, he begins to pick
at his own food idly.
>Kaia gets her own seat, settling comfortably into the place as she starts to
cut into it and eat.
>Masaji stands mutely, being just a guard.
>Owen . o O ( I wonder if mister Cloud has forgotten how miss Inverse nearly
killed him. Their working relationship must have been strained since then. )
>Heidegger fawns all over Rufus. Rufus ignores him.
>Red XIII just remains where he is.
>Burn decides to get something to eat so head over to where Kaia and sits at the
same table as her.
>Reeve barely keeps from sneering at Heidegger. . o O ( How pathetic. )
>Rufus Shinra . o O ( What I must do to appease these media whores... )
>Sana-chan . o O ( Who's the pig? o.O )
>Lina_Inverse mumbles, "......... is seriously wrong .... .. .. .." to
Owen, and Red_XIII.
>Red XIII just growls silently.
>Burn . o O ( Damn...I don't know who to trust anymore after this... )
>Terra finally inverts her gaze away from Rufus after, as she looks down towards
her food slowly and begins to pick at it slowly afterwards.
>Kaia looks up as Burn approaches, still chewing for a moment. She then looks
back to her food again, cutting into it hungrily.
>Burn looks down at the food in front of him...
>Burn . o O ( Oh well...it's food.... )
>Rufus Shinra talks idly to some reporters, carefully keeping his eyes and ears
open to the important discussions...
>Sana-chan finishes scarfing her food. Conversation? Just a slow bump on that
road to satiation. *_*
>Burn starts to consume his food as he keeps himself alert..
>Astraea watches Terra silently, sweatdrops at Sana.
>Astraea . o O ( Cute kid. )
>Lina starts chowing down.
>Burn . o O ( You know something...I haven't heard a thing from Rin the whole
time........ )
>Terra is staring down at her food, as she is still picking at it slowly. She
does not say a word, nor make any motion to eat it though. She appears to be
thinking of something, though.
** Got bumped for the second time >.< **
Press hall(#1795RJ)
This is a cavernous room that can, and does, easily seat several thousand
people. The walls are a drab grey, as if the room was quickly hacked out of a
warehouse. Several propaganda posters and banners for the Corporation ("Shinra
brings the World into a New Age!") attempt to make it less drab, and work for
the most part.
Several dozen long tables are placed throughout the area, each seating 30 or 40
people. A massive buffet-style bar is placed near the entrance, but those with
money to spare can order fresher and more exotic fares. Opposite the entrance
is a raised platform with a singe long table on it, where the Shinra executives
sit. Oddly, there's no visible security measures for the executives... they
must have great faith in their guards.
[Exits : (O)ut ]
[Players : Sephiroth, Cloud, Lucrecia, Terra, Lina_Inverse, Owen(Pup),
Aoshi(Pup), Reeve(Pup), Red_XIII, Rin, Saitou, Astraea, Burn,
Masaji(#1547XZ)(Pup), Kaia(Pup), Sana_Kurata, and Rude(Pup) ]
[Sleepers: Rachel, Masami(Pup), and Heidegger(Pup) ]
[Things : None ]
>Lina finishes her first plate (she's eating slowly tonight .... ) and looks
around for waiters.
>The waiters flee.
>Sana-chan beams, looking over to Shinra.
>Astraea chuckles under her breath.
>Rufus Shinra carries himself with remarkable grace despite the massive amount
of attention he's getting. As for those sitting to his sides...
>SD Lina-chan waves a fist! "Cowards!!"
>Burn . o O ( This food is cold... )
>Astraea smirks.
>Rufus Shinra . o O ( This show is simply to prove that nothing can stop us...
and it is going quite well... )
>Lucrecia is mostly tuning out the crowds. There are more than enough other
things to worry about.
>Lina sighs, looking at Owen. "Is Shinra's cooking always this bad?"
>Terra finally moves her fork along some of the food, and slowly brings it to
her lips as she bites at it. She blinks. . o O ( This is..... a bit hot.... )
Of course, it looks like she kinda mixed the wasabi in it, so lets see how long
she can take i---She QUICKLY reaches out to the glass of water, and glugs it
down. x.x
>Red XIII blinks at Terra and giggles, "A little hot for you hon?"
>Rufus Shinra notes that there's a REAL menu, if you're willing to pay ^_^
>Owen turns to Lina, "There is a pub two blocks north."
>Lina fehs quietly. "I'll keep it in mind next time I come to see someone here
on business ..."
>Lina waylays a passing waiter (she lets him live, don't worry :), and pores
over the menu ...
>Kaia is quite happy with what she has. Or at least mostly happy. She was smart
enough to stay away from the truly spicy sauces, after all.
>Terra's eyes blink slightly for a moment, as she coughcoughs, then looks at Red
as her eyes are now watering from the wasabi. "Uhm... A bit." She goes back to
glugging down the water.
>Burn calls for a waiter....
>Red XIII chuckles quietly.
>Astraea smirks and hands Terra another glass of water, "Here."
>Sana-chan blinkblinks at Terra. "What did you eat? Wow, can I try some? An
actress must know paiiiiiiiiin!" she proclaims dramatically.
>Burn takes some Californian Rolls and dips it totally into the wasabi....
>Terra's eyes blink at Astraea for a brief moment, as she then looks over
towards Astraea slowly after, blinking. "Uhm...Thank you?" She blinks again at
Sana. And, unfortunatly she happens to _care_ for kids lives, even though the
player would really REALLY love to feed Sana the wasabi. "Uhm... You... may not
want to have this. It's... a bit too hot."
>Lucrecia doesn't seem to mind the wasabi a bit, dipping bits of food into it
absentmindedly as she eats.
>Lina hands the menu back to another waiter. -.-
>Astraea chuckles at the tone in Terra's voice, and glances at Sana, "A little
bit won't kill her." she portions a small bit of the wasabi and puts it on
Sana's plate.
>Terra glugglugs down the glass of water quickly. x.x
>Burn puts the wasabi covered roll into his mouth...
>Cloud says, "..........."
>Sana-chan beams, taking up a spoon. "I've never had this..." she says as she
picks it up with her spoon. She smacks her lips as she places the spoon in her
mouth and then slowly pulls it out of her mouth. *_*
Sephiroth pages, "You're going a damn good job. >:) What did I miss while I was
gone?" to you.
>Cloud mumbles, "What is your game, Rufus? Playing to the crowd like this....?"
to you.
>Cloud mumbles, "What is your .... .. ..... .. ....... to the crowd
.... .... .. .. .. .. .." to Rufus_Shinra.
>Terra glugs down that second glass of water, as she sets the glass down after.
x.x . o O ( Well... its different tasting.. but... hot... way too hot. x.x )
mumble cloud=It's simple, Strife. You can not win. We are invincible. It is
simply good taste to make them aware of that now...
>You mumble, "It's simple, Strife. You can not win. We are invincible. It is
simply good taste to make them aware of that now..." to Cloud.
>Rufus_Shinra mumbles, ".... simple .. Strife .. ... can not ... .. ..
... .......... .. .. .. simply good ..... .. make .... aware of
that now .. .. .." to Cloud.
>An ominous-sounding rumble echoes through the room ....
>Astraea watches Sana, and inches back a little.
>Lina glances down at her stomach. . o O ( Stupid company chefs ... they must
not even get paid, if their work is *this* bad! )
>Astraea arches an eyebrow and waves a hand in front of Sana's face.
>Sana-chan looks up at Astraea. "What's so painful about this? o.O"
>Astraea asks, "Eh, you had it in small quantities. It's ... not spicy in the
least to you kiddo?"
>Sana-chan shakeshakes her head slowly.
>Rufus Shinra eats a feast fit for a king, of course.
>Cloud frowns at Rufus, a clearly disturbed expression touching his cold eyes..
o O ( Invincible? )
>Sana-chan waits just a few more minutes... before smoke starts coming out of
her ears. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!
WATER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! @.@"
>Rufus Shinra blinks at that one. Hell, there's a *wfft* as the whole ROOM
blinks o.o
>Terra goes back to picking at her food, and then blinks at Sana after, as she
then immediatly slides the water over towards Sana slowly. o.o;; "Here.."
>Rufus Shinra looks at Cloud, the faint hint of a smirk on his face
all-too-genuine...
>Sana-chan grabs the pitcher and GULPGULPGULPGULPS it with the intensity of a
drowning man full of of salt. Wait, wrong metaphor.
>Astraea SWEATDROPS and claps her hands to her ears.
>Lucrecia winces, and looks up, alarmed, then ohhs. "The wasabi..."
>Astraea glances at Terra and shrugs, "So I was wrong."
>Terra's eyes blink at Sana slightly for a moment, and sweatdrops. . o O ( ...I
told her it was a bad idea, didn't I? )
>Sana-chan gulpgulpgulpgulps till the pitcher's empty. @.@
>Astraea asks, "Need more?"
>Lina looks over the menu again .. sighs, and starts trying to signal a waiter.
>Burn asks, "Hey Kaia....do these events happen often?"
>Sana-chan nodnodnods, her mouth open, her tongue lolling out. o.o
>Terra's eyes blink for a moment, as she herself also stands up to move to grab
another pitcher of water for Sana. o.o
>You mumble, "Just sit there and look content... you aren't on active duty yet."
to Sephiroth.
>Rufus_Shinra mumbles, "Just sit there ... look content .. .. .. you
aren't .. active .... ... .." to Sephiroth.
>Astraea was half a second faster than you, Terra, as she hands Sana a pitcher
from a passing waiter's tray
>Kaia looks over at Burn and shakes her head. "Not really." she says. "But I
must say, they're relatively good when they do."
>Sana-chan grabs the other pitcher and gulpgulpgulps some more. @.@
>Burn . o O ( You call this good? )
>Lina places her order ... (the waiter's sweatdrop can be seen clearly from the
far side of the press hall)
>Terra blinks for a moment, as she moves back to sit down, but she slides Sana
the second pitcher nevertheless. Somehow she has a feeling, with Sana's
reaction, shes going to drink all of the water in Tokyo bay.
>Sana-chan ahhhhhhhhhhhs, setting down the second pitcher, leaving it half full.
>Terra sweatdrops... Or not. o.o
>Burn glances at Sana....
>Burn . o O ( Extremely strange girl.... )
>Astraea sweatdrops. "Fire out?"
>Sephiroth picks at his food witth idle interest, not being particularly
hungry...
>You mumble, "So tell me, enjoying the show?" to Cloud.
>Rufus_Shinra mumbles, ".. tell me .. ........ ... show .." to Cloud.
>Sana_Kurata mumbles, "... .... .." to Astraea.
>Astraea mumbles, "Hm .. ... what .." to Sana_Kurata.
>Lucrecia finishes her meal, is off the thoughts of work again, isn't interested
in the crowd...so she looks over to Sephiroth again, trying to decide what to
say.
>Sana_Kurata mumbles, "What's for dessert .." to Astraea.
>Astraea smirks.
>Astraea mumbles, "... only knows .. ....... or ice ..... ..... .." to
Sana_Kurata.
>Cloud, eyes dark, responds to Rufus unblinking. "So this is your way of
showing off to the public, now...?"
>Sana_Kurata mumbles, ".. .. .... .. wait till .. .. .............
........ ....... .. Shinra-san .." to Astraea.
>Rufus Shinra wipes his mouth with a napkin. "This isn't 'showing off'."
>Astraea glances over her shoulder at Terra and chuckles.. then blinks o O (
Wait a second. ) she scowls and turns away again.
>Astraea mumbles, "Heh .. .... I ..... so .. .. .." to Sana_Kurata.
>Sana-chan beams. "Can I talk to the other man?"
>Terra's eyes then move over towards Rufus slowly afterwards, as she ponders
going up there now and talk to him instead of waiting for the question period.
No... If she waited for the question period, things will be easier. Maybe..
>Lina looks up, and grins, as waiters start bringing food over to her table. It
looks like she ordered about half of the menu ... o.o
>Sephiroth's eyes and ears, however, take in the conversation which surrounds
him. The quiet cacophony of voices, he raises his eyes to Cloud, directly
across from him. A silent reminder..
>Besides... there's easily 50 guards here... and who knows how many in plain
clothes.
>Astraea pats Sana, "Later."
>Rin looks up, having fallen asleep somewhere in the middle of Rufus' speech. x.x
>Lucrecia says, "...Sephiroth?" She turns, facing the man beside her fully.
>Cloud begins to respond to Rufus, his usually quiet personality beginning to
rise in heated debate.. however, meeting that clear gaze of Sephiroth's, he
falls silent. o O ( Sephiroth... what is going on here, I wish I knew...... )
>Rin . o O ( Is he still talking about those cars? )
>Rufus Shinra . o O ( This was a beautiful success... They don't suspect a
thing... )
>Kaia looks up, chewing her food, and looks at Sephiroth, then at Cloud. . o O
(....well, at least this could be interesting....) She pushes the food around
on her plate thoughtfully.
>Sana-chan pouts, waiting to do SOMETHING.
>Rufus Shinra eats quietly. Discussion seems to be dying down... but not quite
enough yet.
>Sephiroth turns slightly to Lucrecia, watching her out of the corner of his
perpetually glowing eyes. "..."
>Astraea mumbles, "Heh .. ... don't ... go .... .... .... ..... .....
.." to Sana_Kurata.
>Astraea indicates the target to Sana.
>Rin looks around sleepily.
>Rachel has connected.
>Masami wakes up.
>Sana-chan beams, hopping off to walk to Terra. "Hiiiii..." She tilts her head
slowly. "We met before,r ight?"
>Astraea manages a smug grin at Sana.
>Lucrecia. o O ( Those eyes....I suppose it makes sense... ) She looks at
Sephiroth, nervously, but with a faint smile touching her lips. "Can we talk
after this?"
>Terra's eyes blink slightly at Sana for a moment, as she shakes her head
slowly, "I.. don't think I saw you before, actually. We just met today, I
believe."
>Sana-chan beams, bowing politely, before straightening up and smiling at Terra
with innocent wide brown eyes. "I'm Kurata Sana, nice to meet you! ^_^"
>Terra's head nods slightly towards Sana, while she forces a slight smile upon
herself as well. So elegent and innocent she appears there as well, for some
reason or another. "I am Terra. Terra Branford."
>Owen heads back to the lobby.
Athan> Owen comes in from the press hall.
Athan> Owen . o O ( Enough... )
Athan> Owen heads outside.
Athan> Owen has left.
>Rufus Shinra raps his glass with his spoon, the chime echoing through the PA
system
>Lina finishes eating, and sits back with a contented sigh ... only to sit up
again when Rufus taps his glass.
>Kaia stops in her eating, looking up alertly at Rufus at the tone.
>Terra's eyes blink for a moment, while her gaze moves slowly towards the front
after, while she looks towards Rufus. She frowns. . o O ( Here goes nothing. )
>Sana-chan is about to speak up when Shinra calls for attention. She blinks,
then bows to Terra. "I gotta get back to my seat... thanks, nice to meet you!"
as she dashes back to her seat.
>Aoshi Shinomori turns his back on Saitou, clearly beginning to step out of the
room with no further words.. none being necessary as far as he's concerned.
His expression, for everything that's occured, remains exactly the same. Some
of the security may however take note of how his eyes seemed to stare at Rufus
for a good amount of time, as though burning an image into his mind..
>Aoshi heads back to the lobby.
Athan> Aoshi comes in from the press hall.
>Rin takes off after Aoshi.
>Rin heads back to the lobby.
Athan> Rin comes in from the press hall.
>Rachel nibbles on a carrot stick as she looks around, half-keeping an eye on
Terra..
>Rufus Shinra speaks up, drawing any remaining attention to himself. "I promised
a question and answer session, and I'm sure a few reporters would love to take
advantage of it..." Mock grin.
Athan> Rin is following Aoshi.
>Red XIII grumbles under his breath.
>Terra immediatly raises her hand after, "I have a question."
>Astraea . o O ( This oughta be good. )
>Astraea looks at Terra silently.
>Sephiroth continues to look at Lucrecia, not answering, the look on his face
deep in thought; he turns toward Rufus's address.
>Sana-chan stands up, waving her hands, "Me! ME! ME! ME!"
Athan> Aoshi Shinomori, having expected either Rin or Saitou, pauses in his
movements to regard the young girl with cold, steely eyes.
>Rufus Shinra ignores Terra... it's easily done, the white noise in here is
staggering. A young man is poined to, who quickly stands up. he asks, "Why is
Shinra the target of all these terrorists." Rufus replies, as if scripted, "I
believe... though I'm not certain... it's because of our prominence in the
industry.'"
Athan> Rin regards Aoshi with a scowl.
>Rachel rolls her eyes, murmuring around her nibbling, "Oh please.." 9.9
Red XIII growls.
>Lucrecia sighs softly, looking over to the questioning.
>Cloud says, ".........."
>Sana-chan stands up on her chair, waving her hands to ask a question, beaming.
^_^ "Shinra-san! Shinra-san! I have a Quuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuestion!"
>Rufus Shinra points at the... eager young child. "Yes?"
Athan> Aoshi Shinomori asks in that calm, cool voice of his. "....Something I
can help you with, bodyguard of the Shinsen Gumi?". A tinge of scorn touches
his voice at the last words.
>Sana-chan puts a finger up to her lips. "About those biiiiiiiiiig planes..."
>Rufus Shinra crosses his hands behind his back, waiting...
>Kaia cheektwitches. . o O (If she asks to be a pilot...)
>Astraea smirks quietly.
>Sana-chan says, "Don't you need, like, a long long long runaway so that a plane
that big can take off without plopping its cargo out like a squishy banana? O.o"
Athan> Rin ignores the tone, she grips the sword at her side with her left
hand, the right resting on the drawstrings of the cloth that wraps it. "Where
are you hiding .. that girl.." She seems reluctant but fills in a name, "Kaoru."
>Astraea 9.9
>Saitou heads back to the lobby.
Athan> Saitou comes in from the press hall.
Athan> Saitou stalks into the room, yellow eyes taking in everything.
>Rachel frowns, idly scratching behind Red's ears as she listens
>Lucrecia . o O ( No, no, she is _not_ going to be a pilot for this project. )
>Rufus Shinra chuckles (fake). "Well, our scientists have made it so that it can
take off on any major conventional runway, though it might have trouble at
small airports."
Athan> Saitou narrows his eyes, "Thinking of leaving, Aoshi?"
Athan> Athan twiddles his thumbs. "..." o.o;
>Red XIII growls quietly, watching and listening as he gets scratched.
>Lina stands, raising her hand ...
Athan> Aoshi Shinomori regards Saitou at the moment now, his clear eyes intent.
"Why would the Oniwabanshu care in the least about a worthless girl such as
Battousai's?" he asks in a cool voice, as though he were discussing the weather.
>Sana-chan beams, bowing. "Thank you, Shinra-san!" as she sits back down in her
seat.
>Rufus Shinra looks around the room. He points to Lina, eyeing the guards... as
if to prove a point.
Athan> Rin asks, "Why don't you answer that?"
>Lina_Inverse pages, "(OOC) Clear something up for me first ... did the SOLDIERs
in the promo film have the Mako eyes?" to you.
>You page, "Nope" to Lina_Inverse.
>Rachel . o O ( I wonder what drug that girl takes.. I've never seen a person
so...airheaded.. )
>Lina says, "Yes ... I was wondering what stage in the training those SOLDIERs
in the film were at; the SOLDIERs I've seen look a *bit* different." She
doesn't say what that difference is ...
Athan> Rin mutters to herself. "If they are all as boring as him, maybe they
can't get girls any other way..."
>Rufus Shinra raises an eyebrow. "Experience, young lady, that comes from years
of hard work and training."
Athan> Saitou narrows his eyes, "I don't know how the Oniwabanshuu work, Aoshi,
but somehow you have taken an interest in the Battousai."
>Lina asks, "That's not quite what I was thinking of. Tell me ... do SOLDIER
candidates receive information on what's involved in *becoming* a SOLDIER,
while they still have a chance to change their minds?"
Athan> Rin frowns. "Stop calling Kenshinsensei by that name. -_-"
Athan> Vincent enters the building, and the glass doors shut quietly.
Athan> Vincent has arrived.
>Rufus Shinra reaches up to brush a lock of hair from his gaze. "I don't
follow... all our employees are subject to the usual contract negotiations, but
that's it."
Athan> Athan sweats o.o;
Burn . o O ( I don't think so... )
Athan> Rin (OOC) fans Athan. o.o;
>Lina hmmmmmmmmms ...
>Sana-chan blinkblinks at Lina, trying to decipher those big words.
>Kaia doesn't have a lot to say on the subject, silently taking a drink from her
waterglass.
>Lina asks, "All right. So you're saying that SOLDIERs don't know the risks that
are involved?"
Athan> Saitou's voice is icy, "And I would like to know why you want the
Battousai."
>Rufus Shinra hmms. "I still don't follow... there is a risk in any security
application, whether it be police work, military work, or corporate security."
Athan> Aoshi Shinomori's eyes narrow ever so slightly at Saitou's words, as
though almost surprised he doesn't understand. Almost. "The Ishinshi began it
when they took Edo castle... Battousai.." he uses the name almost to barb Rin
directly it seems, "..Battousai restarted it when the Oniwabanshu died because
of him." his normally calm, toneless voice takes on a tinge of ice at those
words.
>Terra waits for Lina to finish, of course, actually.
>Lina sighs. "Right." She sits back down, fuming quietly.
>Lina_Inverse mumbles, ".... .. information is ......... *not* Shinra's
business .. .. .." to Red_XIII, and Rachel.
>Terra raises her hand slowly afterwards, as she waits
Athan> Athan says, "..."
>Rufus Shinra points to Terra now.
Athan> Vincent ignores Saitou, Aoshi and Rin; he approaches Athan instead, and
asks quietly, "Is the Banquet still ongoing?"
>Red XIII just watches the front of the room, making no comment towards Lina.
>Rachel mumbles, "So I ....... .. .. .... went .......... ....... ..
.." to Lina_Inverse, and Red_XIII.
>Cloud says, "... ... ..."
Athan> Athan sweatdrops. "It's... finishing up, sir, but still going, yes.
We're out of T-shirts, though." ^^;
>Cloud . o O ( Shinra will rarely lie directly, but nothing they say is ever the
precise truth. )
>Lucrecia . o O ( I suppose the Mako treatments aren't exactly public knowledge
even now... )
Athan> Saitou raises an eyebrow in surprise, "Naruhodo. So Battousai is
responsible for the death of your Oniwabanshu...How did this happen?"
>Terra stands up slowly afterwards. "I would like to ask about the dimensional
gateway Shinra keeps secret in the mako plant?" she asks, while narrowing her
eyes in Rufus' general direction.
>Sana_Kurata mumbles, "Huhhhhhhhhhhhhh .." to Astraea.
>Lina smothers a grin. . o O ( You go, girl. )
>Burn asks, "Dimensional gateway?"
Athan> Vincent shakes his head. "T-shirts do not concern me. Do the records
show if.... if one Lucrecia is in attendance? She is Professor Hojo's.... ....
assistant." He adds the final word with a hint of distaste.
>Rufus Shinra pauses, then LAUGHS out loud. It doesn't seem to be a stage laugh
either. "I DO believe the poor girl has had a bit too much to drink. We may be
on the cutting edge of technology, be we aren't a sci-fi movie."
>Astraea mumbles, "Beat ... .... out of me ... .." to Sana_Kurata.
>Lina raises her hand again.
>Kaia swallows her drink, then looks over at Terra, giving her a strange look.
You can almost see the thought bubble containing a screw and a ball.
>Burn . o O ( What a great liar... )
>Burn looks to Kaia
>Red XIII glances at Rachel.
Athan> Aoshi Shinomori takes a step closer to Saitou. Normally, his sheer
presense and height would intimidate, however.. with Saitou actually one of
VERY few people *above* his own height, the effect is lost. "Battousai did not
kill them himself.. but due to his actions, they died needless deaths..
honorless. The Oniwabanshu *will* be known as the strongest.. we defeated the
Shinsen Gumi, and we will defeat Battousai, all in good time."
>Rufus Shinra comments jokingly, "But I assure everyone here, we're only a year
away from teleportation and dimensional travel. Really." Laughter.
>Terra frowns towards Rufus, while her eyes _fill_ with rage towards Rufus.
"_AND_, I would like to ask about the people you are bringing from the other
dimension into here for your own _purposes_! I have _proof_, if you need it!"
She knows she is the center of attention, but on _this_ subject she is able to
continue pushing herself forward. She _HATES_ Shinra for this very thing.
Athan> Rin asks, "Even if it means you must kidnap innocent people?"
Athan> Poor Aoshi. That intimidation failure's going to rankle with him for
*months*, too.
>Lina says, "...." and pulls her hand back down. . o O ( Gotta make sure *Terra*
stays free and alive now. )
>Rufus Shinra turns to Terra... there's still a smirk on his face, but his tone
is dead-serious. "I will have to ask that you sit down... you've embarrased
yourself enough."
Athan> Rin narrows her eyes at Aoshi.
>Lina puts her hand back up. ^^;;
>Cloud says, ".............."
>Kaia blinks at Terra again, then at Masaji, then Rufus. She then settles
herself into her chair again, turning her attention more fully to her
waterglass.
>Cloud . o O ( Who is that girl, and what *gateway*...? )
>Terra shakes her head towards Rufus after, as she says, "No! I _WILL_ not sit
down! Not after what you had done... Taking ME away from my home... Taking ME
away from my children... And leaving THEM to their own deaths!"
>Astraea looks at Terra silently.
>Astraea . o O ( ...? )
Athan> Saitou's yellow eyes burns with anger, "No one is going to take my
favorite prey away from me."
>Lucrecia stares at Terra, suprised by this. "...."
Athan> Rin blinks.
Athan> Myo-ohki enters the building, and the glass doors shut quietly.
Athan> Myo-ohki has arrived.
Athan> Myo-kun walks in, looking around ...
>Rufus Shinra quickly eyes a guard. "Please, young lady, don't be violent. Maybe
you should seek a help program..."
>Rachel looks around and frowns
>Astraea looks up at Rufus, then at Terra.
>Rachel . o O ( Uh oh.. Terra, please, sit down! )
Athan> Myo-ohki heads towards the press hall.
Myo-ohki comes in from the lobby.
>Sana-chan . o O ( Children? o.o )
>Lina . o O ( Good work, Myo ... get Terra out of here. )
>Terra grips her hands into fists as she grits her teeth with rage. "How DARE
you say that.. I will NEVER forgive you for what you had done! Or, for what
your _PEOPLE_ had done if you have no knowledge of it!"
>Myo-kun starts working his way through the crowd ... heading for Terra, as Lina
asked.
Athan> Aoshi Shinomori tilts his head as he regards Saitou with a flicker of
amusement at best. "The Shinsen Gumi, defending the legendary Hitokiri of the
Ishinshi...? Have they become that weak?"
>Rufus Shinra says, pleadingly, "PLEASE calm down..."
>Astraea narrows her eyes slightly and reaches for Terra's wrist.
Athan> Athan looks at a monitor. "Luc... Lucrecia? Yes."
>Myo-kun reaches up to tug on Terra's sleeve.
>Sana-chan clambers off her chair, zooming for the other side of Terra. "...
Please calm down???"
>Burn . o O ( Wonder what's gonna happen to her now... )
>Terra GLARES towards Rufus with absolute RAGE, as she is about to YELL at him,
and _SHOW_ him this 'proof', but unfortunatly she is grabbed by Astraea. She
blinks again for a moment, and she looks about slowly. Well, she notices how
much attention she has now...and, she then sits down after hearing Sana.
Unfortunatly, she has a soft spot for children.
>Rufus Shinra . o O ( Arrogant... did she really think that would work? )
>Astraea offers to lead Terra.
Athan> Vincent nods to Athan, and spares a single glance for the argument as he
moves toward the Press Hall.
>Cloud mumbles, "Let her go, Rufus. You're invincible, remember?" to you.
>Cloud mumbles, "... ... go .. Rufus .. ...... .......... .. remember
.." to Rufus_Shinra.
>Myo-ohki mumbles, "Come .... me .. ...... .. .. .. we .... .. get
you ... .. here .." to Terra.
>Whatever is spoken between Cloud and Rufus, the faintest touch of bitterness
touches his eyes at his own words.
>Astraea has a firm grip on Terra's wrist. She scowls at Myo, "Beat it."
>You mumble, "I don't need to kill her. Not now, at least. She's proven herself
harmless." to Cloud.
>Rufus_Shinra mumbles, "I ..... .... to kill ... .. Not ... .. ..
..... .. ..... proven herself harmless .." to Cloud.
>Terra decides to follow Astraea.
>Astraea says, "Excuse us."
>Astraea sidles past Terra and runs out with her.
Athan> Saitou smiles, "I am not defending him. I'm carrying out my ideals. Aku,
soku, zan. I will not allow anyone to break the law, even the Oniwanbanshu."
Astraea heads back to the lobby.
Athan> Astraea enters with Terra following behind.
Astraea leaves with Terra following behind.
>Myo-kun blinks, and follows Astraea and Terra out ...
Myo-ohki heads back to the lobby.
Athan> Myo-ohki comes in from the press hall.
Athan> Astraea heads outside.
Athan> Astraea leaves with Terra following behind.
Athan> Myo-ohki heads outside.
Athan> Vincent heads towards the press hall.
Vincent comes in from the lobby.
Athan> Vincent has left.
>Vincent has arrived.
>Kaia just watches the woman in silence. . o O (.....that's the same one as
before...)
>Sana-chan blinkblinks, suddenly left alone. She slowly turns around to look
back at Rufus... o.o
>Lina sighs ...
>Burn looks at Kaia, "Hey Kaia, did you know anything about this?"
>Kaia blinks and looks at Burn, then shrugs. "Some delusional woman."
>Lina keeps her hand up, stretching a bit.
>Rufus Shinra shakes his head. He jokingly remarks, "Some people just can't take
their alcohol."
>Burn . o O ( Thing is....she wasn't being delusional... )
>Kaia chuckles some at Rufus' words, hoping it'll catch. Probably not...but hey,
She tried.
Athan> Aoshi Shinomori responds simply, calmly to Saitou. "It is the Battousai
that interests the Oniwabanshu. Not his weak friends or allies.. only him. When
you decide to truly defend your own.. ideals.." a touch of scorn enters his
voice at that, "..you'll realize this all on your own." With that, he blatantly
turns his back upon Saitou and Rin, walking towards the exit with the grace
that only one who's trained their entire life could muster.
>Rachel mumbles, "... ..... .. ..... .. Terra .. I ..... ..... .....
that ..... .. .." to Lina_Inverse, and Red_XIII.
>Lina nods to Rachel ..
>Rachel gets to her feet and heads out..
Rachel heads back to the lobby.
Athan> Rachel comes in from the press hall.
>You mumble, "You see? Even if you tell people what I am up to, nobody will
believe you. This is why I will win." to Cloud.
>Rufus_Shinra mumbles, "You see .. .... if ... tell people what . am
up to .. ...... will ....... ... .. This .. ... . .... win .." to
Cloud.
>Lina_Inverse mumbles, "Good .... - ..... looking for .... .." to
Red_XIII.
>Vincent says, "....."
>Burn stands up and quietly walks out to the lobby...
>Burn heads back to the lobby.
Athan> Burn comes in from the press hall.
>Burn has left.
Athan> Burn has arrived.
Athan> Rin says, "Hmf! I'm not going to let him sneak away."
Athan> Rin heads outside.
Athan> Rin has left.
>Sana-chan blinkblinks, looking around. Is that the end of the questions and
answers period?
>Cloud . o O ( It's time to see if Rufus really meant what he said. )
>Lina patiently keeps her hand up.
Athan> Burn asks, "Did that girl leave already?"
>Rufus Shinra turns to look at lina
Athan> Athan says, "Hai."
>Vincent pauses by the door, scanning the crowd. HIis gaze is drawn, inevitably,
to Lucrecia, and rests there for some time.
Athan> Saitou smiles, "Next time we meet, Aoshi, I will kill you. The wolf of
Mibu will sink his teeth into your throat."
Athan> Rachel steps into a shadow and then is gone...
Athan> Rachel has left.
>Kaia looks to the door, then double-takes. . o O (...him too?)
>Cloud looks directly at Rufus, meeting his gaze with cold eyes as he speaks
quietly. "Then I am not a threat to you, by your own reckoning." With that,
he stands up from the table, quietly setting a napkin down as he turns his
back.. walking down the stairs.
>Lina stands up.
>Rufus Shinra doesn't stop Cloud from leaving, but he does smirk triumphantly.
>Red XIII glances towards Cloud.
>Lina_Inverse mumbles, ".. .... ..... .." to Red_XIII.
Athan> Burn heads outside.
Athan> Aoshi Shinomori ignores the spoken threats... threats do not concern
him, for they are mere words. Action speaks louder than any words, particularly
from the Shinsen Gumi.
Athan> Aoshi heads outside.
>Rufus Shinra . o O ( Checkmate, Strife. )
>Lucrecia is sitting....beside Sephiroth, who is beside Rufus, who is, of course
at the head table. Her attention is still mostly drawn by those with her, but
she soon notices Vincent, and waves almost imperceptibly to him as she notices
his gaze.
>Lina says, "I *do* have another question ..."
>Rufus Shinra says, "You shouldn't occupy ALL our time... but ask."
>Red XIII just growls at Lina.
>Lina smirks faintly. "Gomen ne." Her expression turns serious again - very
serious. "There have been a number of allegations, mine among them, that Mako
power *does* pose a threat to the environment ... if not to the welfare of the
planet itself. What has Shinra done to ensure that Mako energy is as safe as
it's been advertised to be?"
Athan> Saitou heads outside.
Athan> Saitou has left.
>Cloud walks quietly down to Red, pausing by him...
>Red XIII gets to his feet, looking up at Cloud.
>Cloud also blinks as he does so at the entrance, closer by the shadows. o O (
Vincent....? )
>Vincent spots Sephiroth beside Lucrecia, and his eyes widen perceptibly. His
glance darts from the silver-haired seraph to the woman beside him, and he nods
faintly to her, indicating her companion. A wordless question hangs in the air.
>Rufus Shinra hmms at that, as if seriously pondering it. "The government has
performed tests around the Reactor, showing everything to be within acceptable
levels. And compared to nuclear, or coal power, Mako is far more clean and
efficient."
>Cloud mumbles, ".. .. .. .. .. .. .... to see you again .. ..
.." to Red_XIII.
>Sephiroth remains where he's sitting, unblinking, as Cloud leaves, his jade
colored eyes burning quietly into his back. ....
>Sana-chan puts a finger to her lips, blinking widely at all this. o.o
>Lina nods. "And have the long-term effects been studied yet? I hear Shinra's
had plenty of opportunity to do so, 'back home' as it were."
>Red_XIII mumbles, ".. .. .... to see ... .. well .. Cloud .. We all
were very worried .." to Cloud.
>Rufus Shinra narrows his eyes. "I will have to ask you to get to the point,
time runs short."
>Cloud pauses at Lina's question.. o O ( Rufus is right.. they'd never believe
us... )
>Lina smiles, and goes in for the kill
>Lina . o O ( Maybe. )
>Lina says, "My point is this: Shinra's almost excellent public relations
campaign not withstanding, there are still quite a few people around who don't
trust Shinra, Inc. And from the looks of things, Shinra's opposition isn't just
going to quietly go away ... whether their opinions are well-founded, or
apparently unfounded."
>Lina asks, "There are many unanswered questions still floating around; are
those questions going to be answered *satisfactorily and truthfully* in the
near future?"
>Rufus Shinra says, simply. "We can't please everyone. I'm sure our competitors
don't like us very much, for instance." He pauses. "And everything tonight HAS
been answered truthfully."
>Cloud mumbles, "I .... some ..... air .. .... .. .. .. be outside
.. .. .. .. .. .." to Red_XIII.
>Red_XIII mumbles, "Would you care for company .." to Cloud.
>Lina . o O ( 'Truthfully,' my ass!! )
>Lina asks, "And is there documentation to prove the facts you've presented?"
Athan> Burn enters the building, and the glass doors shut quietly.
Athan> Burn has arrived.
Athan> Burn heads towards the press hall.
>Burn comes in from the lobby.
Athan> Rachel enters the building, and the glass doors shut quietly.
Athan> Rachel has arrived.
>Cloud nods silently to Red, his gaze moving up to Rufus once more on the podeum
before turning towards the exit. "........."
Athan> Rachel heads towards the press hall.
Rachel comes in from the lobby.
>Rufus Shinra says, "But of course. It will be provided to the Press tomorrow."
Red XIII pads after Cloud, growling over his shoulder briefly as he does so.
>Lina waves slightly to Red.
>Rachel calmly walks back in and stops as she sees Red and Cloud approaching..
>Lina resumes her seat.
>Sana-chan stretches and yawns, standing up in her blue dress. She walks over to
Shinra.
>Red_XIII decides to follow Cloud.
>Cloud, nearing Rachel, quietly inclines his head towards her. A very disturbed
expression touches his eyes at the evening's.. revelations.
>Rufus Shinra says, "That will conclude the hosted portion of our dinner
tonight, although the hall will be opened for a few more hours. I hope you have
enjoyed your stay." . o O ( Feh. )
>Rachel mumbles, "..... .. .. .... .... .. ... you again .. ..
Heading out .." to Cloud, and Red_XIII.
>Red XIII stays close to Cloud, providing furry contact to his leg.
>Vincent threads his way through what's left of the crowd, moving along the wall
in the direction of the 'head' table. o O ( Lucrecia and Sephiroth both... )
>Sana-chan stands in front of Shinra. "Thank you for a pleasant evening!" She
bows, then beams up at him.
>Cloud nods to Rachel, with a single backward glance at Rufus's closing
statement. "... Yeah..." he speaks quietly. He hesitates as he realizes
Vincents intentions.. o O ( Why would he... Sephiroth?? )
>Red XIII glances in the same direction.
>Rufus Shinra steps back from his seat and walks towards the exit. It's implied that
Sephiroth and Lucrecia are to follow.
** Aaaannnnd... I get bumped AGAIN. I give up this time. **
(
geocities.com/tokyo/harbor/3252) (
geocities.com/tokyo/harbor) (
geocities.com/tokyo)