Current Energy: 16
Current Training: Aura (9/10)
Monday, January 31st, 2011
Winslow High, Brockton Bay
The day starts normally enough. You've long since reconciled yourself to the hours your Master keeps. Truthfully, they aren't even really all that bad for your current emulation. Oscar Pine was, prior to anything else, a farmboy, and farms were not places that tolerated sleeping in.
Of course, as was becoming a running theme with this emulation, you found yourself resenting this. Because instead of blithely sleeping through your Master's waking routine, you were instead forced to go through the excruciating process of waking up and disentangling yourselves from each other. Then - when you were awkwardly trying to remember how to make a passable breakfast that didn't just consist of toast, she had breezed past and taken over the kitchen like you weren't there, relegating you to the table where she ended up serving you pancakes. Then, she spent the rest of the morning 'settling her stomach' by meditating in your lap again.
Needless to say, you were feeling... emasculated isn't the proper word, because your manhood isn't really the point. But it's close. You were the protector here! You were supposed to make sure nothing bad happened to your Master! Instead, you've spent a vast majority of your time being taken care of like a favoured sibling or something. You didn't dislike the contact, but it was somehow just so infuriating.
Which was why, you were actually kind of glad to be getting back to school with your Master. Here, you had a clear and defined purpose. While your Master saw to her education, you had tacit and unspoken permission from the principle to patrol the halls, ensuring the safety of all the students! This you could do!
The first thing you noticed as your Master entered the school, was that it was oddly loud. The students didn't gaze upon your Master with the same barely restrained terror or distress that they once had. Instead, many of them - girls and boys alike - mostly just watched her pass with interest followed quickly by loose gossip, most of which was even good in a very general sense of the word. You hung back in your invisible form a few times to eavesdrop, and quickly found that where once these students might have been quietly casting aspersions on your Master, or more recently, discussing why she should be feared above all others in the school, now the gossip was decidedly... weirder.
"I heard personally trains everyone on her team, because she doesn't think having powers is good enough."
"Nah I'm pretty sure that's the rainbow armor guy, her boyfriend."
"Are they dating? You only ever see her in public with Glory Girl, and I heard she broke up with her boyfriend."
"That would explain how she went from zero to one hundred with the empire in like a day. Something to fight for right?"
"D'you think maybe that was why Hess and Barnes were always... you know? With the thing on the news yesterday..."
"Dude. Shut the fuck up - they outed a Ward man. I'm surprised the Triumvirate isn't in town."
"Why would they? You heard what they said, Hess was a bitch anyway."
You pointedly don't report any of that to your Master, although you're sure she could hear it just fine if she actually wanted to. Honestly, you're pretty sure she wouldn't care all that much in the first place, not anymore. As far as your Master is concerned, she's just here to get her education and keep the gangs in line. Nothing more, nothing less. Once, she might have possibly looked forward to seeing Greg but well... that ship has sailed you suppose. You still occasionally worry about the goof, but there isn't much you can actually do about it, not now that the boy has so obviously joined the Undersiders.
Especially after you found out that they decided to air all the details of your Master's trigger event in excruciating detail on the news somehow. Something that your Master mostly just smiled at while not speaking or moving for a solid minute. When she had finally gotten her emotions under control she had spent a solid ten minutes uncontrollably radiating power and menace at anyone that tried to talk to her. Thankfully, she got over it pretty quickly, but still.
'You know what to do right?' Your Master asks you kindly as she slides into her homeroom class.
'Yup. Just make sure noone murders anyone else.' You answer easily, before phasing through the wall to begin your patrols.
[...This is a school?] Ozma asks you as he fully takes in the decrepit and often deliberately mistreated building around you.
"School here is about basic math and socialization. Not about shooting Grimm in the face." You point out, not worried about being overheard in your Spiritual Form.
[And? What child could possibly hope to learn anything from a place like this?] Ozma replies with obvious distaste.
"It's not... that bad..." You defend weakly. You've had Emulations that would as soon burn the school down as defend it verbally, but well, you aren't one of them currently. In retrospect, it's probably good you never came here in your previous incarnation. You probably would have done something obnoxious, like melt the building down with magic, just to make a point.
Suddenly, almost as if in defiance over your defense, you turn a corner only to find two students wearing the old ABB colours, holding another against a locker. All three boys are Asian, with one boy holding the first still while the other one searches him - presumably for money or weaponry. Possibly drugs.
"You won't get away with this." The first boy whimpers, somewhat melodramatically, tears forming in his eyes.
"Yeah, yeah, because all of you fucking morons are rolling over for that bitch. We get it." One of the aggressors sneers.
"The Panda-" The victim tries to speak but is stopped when he his jerked forward, banging his head against his locker with a loud clack.
"The Panda isn't fucking real. No one has even seen that fucking thing with her in weeks."
"Actually," You say, appearing between the two aggressors. "I was just as real then as I am now." you note, swinging Long Memory gently outward to thwack against the two boys knees and causing them to fall over, as both of them lacked aura to defend themselves with.
You eye the bullies for a second, ensuring they won't just get up and try to run, then turn towards their victim.
"Are you alright?" You ask him with some concern, eyeing the welt on his forehead. "If you wait till lunch then-" You being but are cut off when he turns and bows to you.
"Thank you! I knew- I mean I wear the patch and I don't fight or run with the ABB anymore but- Thank you!" He says quickly, flashing a crudely made patch that has clearly been sewn into his backpack. The patch looks like a rough approximation of a panda, and for the life of you, you can't figure out what it's supposed to mean. You can guess but it feels like any reason you could come up with would be... well... stupid.
"I- I mean, it's fine. I think. Can you-" You start, but are startled when the boy just sort of sprints off.
"Should..." You pause, turning towards the two bullies, who are doing their utmost to remain very still.
"...I call someone...?"
You don't full grasp what has happened until lunch time, when you reconvene with your Master just in time for two very large boys to fall in nearby and take seats across the lunch table from her.
This is notable for two reasons. For one thing, one of the boys is a large Asian you are fairly certain you saw wearing ABB colours last time you came to school, while the other was one of the Empire hopefuls who you had once witnessed egg the Asian on to attempt to do something stupid to your Master. Second, no one sits with your Master. Not since Greg. And you can tell that she's just as confused as you are by the occurrence, which rules out the idea that she might have just made some new friends in your absence.
"How're things on your end?" The first boy - the Empire one - says, leaning one arm on the table.
"Slow. Many of them don't want to change, even if it's the smartest choice. They're to used to being important. Getting what they want." The Asian responds with a shrug.
"Eh, we'll get em. Eventually." The first boy responds, lifting a hand to fist bump, which the other one responds to easily.
""Skadoosh."" They say in tandem, then turn to begin eating there lunch.
"I'm sorry but what the hell?" Taylor blurts out at that last part, blushing slightly. The two boys share a look before the first one responds.
"I'm Michael, that's Jun. We thought you... wanted the ABB and Empire to leave the school alone?" He questions carefully.
"I do! I just don't know what that has to do with.. this." Your Master says, gesturing at the two of them.
"Well, they're gangs. They only respond to one thing, power. We figured if we gave them something else to get hard over-" Michael explains then flinches when Jun elbows him in the side.
"Uh, I mean, you know, gave them something else to be... into... they'd let the other stuff go."
"And the fist bump thing?" Taylor pushes.
"It's from your thing with Night. The Panda used to say it a lot too." Jun explains, withdrawing his cellphone and fiddling with it, before turning it around to show camera footage of your Master's off handed handling of the Nazi Changer. The video footage is from entirely too close to the fighting, and once again leaves you in awe at the complete lack of survival instincts the people of this city apparently possess.
"Maaaaan. You just Skadooshed her like she didn't even matter. Cool as-" Michael pauses, glancing at Jun who narrows his eyes back at him before continuing, "- heck."
"Panda Gang." The two say, fist bumping again, which is about the point when you notice the panda patches on both students backpacks.
"I'm gonna be honest. I have no idea how to take this." Your Master says bluntly.
"We thought this was what you wanted?" Jun asks.
"Yeah but, you started another gang!" She says in exasperation, pinching the bridge of her nose and ignoring the half eaten sandwich in front of her.
"It's more like a loose association. Or a fan club. Anyone who doesn't wanna deal with the gang sh- stuff, anymore, is Panda Gang. We've got like, a homework club and stuff." Michael says, uncomfortably, obviously realizing that your Master's disapproval could make or break his little movement. She stares at him for a second before sighing and returning to her sandwich.
"Do whatever you want as long as you aren't shooting each other and selling drugs I guess." She grumbles.
'Are you embarrassed?' You tease her mentally causing her to nearly flinch.
'Of course I'm embarrassed! Panda Gang!? What the hell is that!? Who thought that was cool sounding!?' She practically screams at you.
'Well, I think you're really cool Master.' You say to her with a light grin.
'Yeah keep talking, we'll see how cocky you are when it's time to go to sleep again.' She fires back at you, causing you to blanch slightly.
Note to self; don't antagonize your Master during this Emulation, even in jest.
After school, you and your Master making a quick trip to the location of Fleur's ghost by way of a Gap that she makes in front of the school and steps through, heedless of the watching students around her. After waiting for a moment ensure no one has foolishly tried to lunge into the portal after her, your Master closes the Gap with a nod and turns around to peer curiously at the street before you.
Again, you can't see ghosts, so you aren't really sure what to do with yourself.
"Are you sure there's something actually wrong with her?" You ask curiously. You can't say you're well versed in ghosts - mostly because they aren't really real where your current Emulation comes from - but to your mind, 'ghost' and 'weird creepy shit' are pretty synonymous. So the fact that Fleur's ghost is being creepy and weird seems pretty standard to you.
"I don't know. I've never actually looked at one before. I just get a bad feeling from her. I don't think she's supposed to be this... fluid." Your Master says her head craning upwards to look at something you can't see as the other pedestrians pointedly walk around you.
"I don't understand." You answer, frowning.
"I mean... how big she is keeps changing. It's like I'm looking at a reflection in a pond, and someone keeps throwing rocks in. The water moves and the reflection stretches. Like that." Your Master explains, carefully stepping backwards and reaches out to pull you out of the way of... something, that sends a chill down your spine.
"Lemme see!" Mini-Taylor calls out, appearing from literally nowhere.
Directly onto your back, with her arms wrapped around your neck.
Oh good, the small one is just as bad. Greaaaaat.
"Hey, move forward a little bit." She says to you, poking you in the cheek. You do so, and instantly feel the temperature around you drop, as though you had just been splashed in ice water.
"Huh. Where I'm from, ghost have this chain thing in their chests that eats itself up after a while. When it's gone the ghost turns into a Hollow, which is usually when a Soul Reaper comes along and stabs it." Mini-Taylor explains, making a brisk stabbing motion with one hand right next to your face.
"So... I should stab her?" Taylor asks hesitantly.
"I'unno. S'what I would do. But that would send her to the afterlife, so you couldn't bring her back that way." Mini-Taylor answers with a shrug.
"So that's a no then." Taylor answers pensively, turning back towards the ghost - you assume.
"I think what's happening is that, cus she can't pass on, she's just been sitting here building up hate for whatever killed her. She can't turn into a Hollow, and she can't move on, so she's just stuck here being mad. Kinda sucks." Mini-Taylor continues on, her tone of voice implying she couldn't care less about what happens to this particular ghost, which is at odds with your Master's personal concerns on the topic.
Then again, you suppose that Mini-Taylor is a sword that was explicitly made to slay ghostly monsters like this. She wouldn't exactly feel much empathy for them.
"Can Hollows think?" Your Master asks after a some more time spent examining something you can't see.
"Strong ones, yeah. They're basically just humans with attitude." Mini-Taylor says, making a face.
"So..." You say after a second, when no one else speaks.
"I have some ideas. Nothing I can do right here though." Taylor admits easily. You tilt your head upward, to look into Mini-Taylor's eyes, as she has continued to climb you until she has basically found herself kneeling on your shoulders.
"What?" She asks innocently.
"Is this... necessary?" You half beg.
Mini-Taylor tilts her head as though in thought, looks from you to your Master and back again, and then smirks at you.
"Uhuh." She says, wrapping her little arms around your forehead.
You groan.