Oh Tell me Why, There is a Fortress in the Sky o/`

Haru is a man on a mission. His mission is to not do any missions today. This is R&R day. Nothing serious. Seriously nothing.

Seriously bored out of his mind.

The white haired human is making his way through the Fort Ouph main squares. Haru might be better described as 'pacing' around the square. Getting his steps in. Not the BEST place to do that given there are no guard rails and its not uncommon to hear people falling off the floating fort and going splat. Maybe thats the point. Danger! His path of the ninja starts here. A long path given he is an Enchanter.

Being in a floating city, Himari is careful of the dangers it holds. The Tanuki cait sith pushes up her glasses as she makes her way through the square as well. She carries a few sealed envelopes, and it's possible that she's helping out and doing a few errands around the place.

She takes a few moments to stop, pause and skim over the letters before glancing up and considering where they need to go. She steps foward again and trips. Thankfully she's no where near the edge, so just falls over. She also keeps hold on the letters, which may no be a little dusty.

Except one, which has escaped her grasp and blowing towards the enchanter.

"Hey, stop that!" she calls out.

Haru is a tall hooman. As laws of drama and comedy dictate, the letter is flying his way at the same velocity of an unladen swallow. Right towards his face. Its a nice face. Charismatic. It has a monocle on it. It ALMOST has a letter on it but by some grace of the Three Goddesses he turns to snatch the letter right as it comes his way. The muscle reflexes surprise even him. "And now, my training is complete. I am now ready for the next level: chopsticks versus flies."

On a later date, Haru will attempt this feat and fail. Horribly.

In the present, the Artificer looks around to the tanuki girl with the extra floofy tail. "I believe this is yours, miss," Haru says, making that extra effort to look all cool and aloof with wind blowing in his white hair. Billowing. In his face. Over his one good blue eye. "It is kinda windy up here, isnt it," he says, tilting his head in one direction so he can see again.

A sigh of relief is breathed by the Tanuki when she notices the human catching the stray letter. She then pushes herself up onto her kneels. She quickly double checks the letters that she's carrying, and then adjusts her glasses again as well as brushing her dark hair from her face. Though the leaf on her head stays put and doesn't move, despite the breeze.

She then stands up, and brushes herself down carefuly with one hand. She gives a sheepish smile to the saviour of the letter, and nods her head. "Y-yes, that's mine. Thank you for stopping it. I think I might have been in trouble if I'd lost it." She quickly nods her head in agreement. "Oh, it is windy! Again, thank you so much for stopping it. It would have been terrible trying to find it. If it could be found at all."

"We do what we can to help each other out, y'know?" Haru says with a smile on his face. It might be the one 'grounded' thought he has had as of late, what with Wights and Shadow Festivals and Flying Necrodancers all going about. "So don't think anything of it," he continues on. For a moment he is transfixed on that leaf. How does it do that?! Some people's eyes wander when they talk. For Haru, he is talking while looking at the leaf. "You look familiar," he tells the leaf and its associated Tanuki, "a member of Moon Tree, right?" Thats right, the great Moon Tree leaf, descended from the parent tree to bless this Tanuki and her letter delivering ways.

Haru's one blue eye shifts down to get eye to eye contact. The purple monocle on his other hides what could lie beneath. "And delivering letters, too? You really are an interesting character. I'm Haru, by the way, Haru Nox." He points to an imaginary space above his head where an Inspect would show said name.

"You're right there!" she says in agreement as she looks up towards the much taller man. "It'd be a lot better if we could all get along together, too. I don't really like all the fighting." She gives a soft sigh and shakes her head.

She then pauses and blinks a couple of times, and tilts her head to the side to consider the monocled man curiously. "That's me! I am from Moon Tree! Though I just try to stay away from the danger." she raises herself up on her toes to look closer at the taller man.

"I think I've seen you around before, too. Silver Sword, right?" Another nod then follows. "I'm just helping out. I'm usually cleaning memorials. Oh, and it's nice to meet you Haru-san. I am Himari Saito, but feel free to call me Himari. Everyone calls me that."

"Ok, Himari," a pause, "chan?" Haru looks at Himari a moment and consider, "No, that sounds off. Just Himari without the honorifics." His navy jacket blows with a strong gust of wind, the Enchanter well dressed for city travel but poorly if it was for the wilderness or battle. Silver Sword is known more for martial prowess in raids and exploration. "Thats right, Silver Sword. Along with Shiruba, one of the Guild representatives. Though, that part is a more recent change to things." He twirls two fingers in the air as he denotes 'gotta keep moving' in terms of how well he handles sitting idle, "I've been organizing things for the Alliance as of late so my voice may be familiar from the Alliance chimlinks."

Cleaning memorials though? That sounds interesting. Haru looks down to the Tanuki girl, curiosity written on his face, "You clean memorials? Thats," he looks for the right word, "refreshing to hear, honestly. Is it something you were always into or did something draw you to it more recently?" Recently is rather subjective, as that could be more 'Since the Apoc when we all got stuck here'.

"Himari-chan is fine, too!" the Tanuki replies cheerfully, as well as offering a bright smile to go with it. "I listen in now and then, but a lot of the time I just ignore it. Though I do recognise your voice now that you mention it. It sounds like you're very busy all of the time if you're organising things. Especially after we lost our head quarters." Her gaze shifts towards the temporary one across the square, though it seems that she's ready to walk if Haru if he walks somewhere else.

"It was something I started to do after the Apoc. It was just to get my mind off things, and I didn't know what to do with myself at first. I went from school and working to having nothing to do, so I just started to look after them." She purses her lips again and then shrugs her shoulders.

Haru is getting those steps in. Those steps take the two of them to a casual walk around the square where the wind isn't going to be as vicious to letters and wardrobe. "I have help," he admits, "Shiruba, Riz, and Gig. Some of the things that they were involved in during the last two years reminds me that we all start somewhere and everyone can help in some way." He starts to laugh out of nowhere, "Sorry, sometimes I have a hard time turning that 'pontificated mode' off. It really pisses Yeo off sometimes." He makes a gesture of Yeowangs frame, "Lady about this big. Intensely smart. Set up the Ninetails Bank, if you believe it."

"Organizing things helps me get my mind off of things too. Who knows, maybe I'll join you next time I see you at the memorials? Cleaning is rather," Haru looks up at the sky to think of the right word, "cathartic. Like, it puts things back in order. Or honors their original state." A hand touches his chest, "Until about six months ago I was pretty much just a crafter, so I get the whole 'finding your feet' thing." A curious hum as he looks down to the tanuki, "So Himari," pause, "chan, maybe you can help me out with something. Im trying to find the Alliance's roots again. But I don't think it comes from the top downwards. I think it starts with the people like you or me. If you could do anything you wanted and had friends to support you all of the way, what would you do?" Big question for someone he only just started talking to.

Himari Saito is more careful now, and is keeping a close eye on the ground so that she doesn't trip and lose the letters that she's carrying again. "It's good that you have help then. You seem like a natural born leader, that's one thing I'll say. " She tilts her head to the side, and while the names might ring a bell, she might not recognise all of them. She blinks at the mention of the Bank. "Oh, wait. Her? I heard of that being set up. That's really quite impressive. I do pay a bit of attention to some of the rumours that some of the merchants talk about."

She then glances up towards Haru again and nods. "I wouldn't mind the company. It can get a bit lonely cleaning them by yourself. I kind of looking at it as them not being forgotten, same as I try to look after memorials that some of us have made for those we can no longer see. It's kind of grim, I know." She looks up towards the spot that Haru is looking towards, and then towards him at the heavy question.

"What would I do if I could do anything and had friends to support me? Ummm. I think do what I was doing before the Apoc anyway. Finish highschool and keep performing. I'm simple, and I have simple needs."

A natural born leader. Himari may have excellent instincts, there. In another world that would have been the exact phrase to describe the kind of kid that grew up in the environment young Haru did. "I think its kind of sweet," Haru tells Himari in response to thoughts of taking care of the memorials, "like if people to take the time to honor those before us, their efforts are not really gone. Some may have been soldiers, who would want their sacrifice to have meant something. Others may have been craftsmen, that wanted to leave the world a more beautiful place. In a way, that makes you the guardian of their memories. Rather inspiring. " A gust of wind rolls by the pair as they walk, muffling the sounds of any steps against the stones.

"Perform," Haru catches onto part of that dream as he looks down to Himari again, "you were a performer? Like musical or a perhaps an actress?"

With the gust of wind, Himari's ears twitch slightly, though her leaf remains fixed on top of her head. "I never really thought of it like that before," she admits. "I guess I am the guardian of memories then. Though I just usually called myself a caretaker. Maybe it'll inspire others to take care of them when if I go." She looks thoughtful at the idea. "But hopefully that's not for a long time yet. I also think it helps people to know that there's someone out there looking after those that have gone." She smiles softly to herself and looks downwards for a moment.

The question about performing causes her to glance back up to Haru again, and she offers a nod of her head. "I have done some acting, though it was mainly commericals and extra work. I was an Idol. Being up on stage was a lot of fun, and the fans really liked it. I think that's what I miss the most. The fans."

"Oooh," fingersnaps Haru as if something clicked, "you were an idol. No wonder you are so easy to talk to. Natural charisma," he offers a light laugh to that. The human Artificer can't recall any idols he has met in person, but he is familiar with the marketing department of his family's company. "You know, I've been toying with an idea ever since the little HQ meetup a couple days back. You know what the Alliance would benefit from?" The man with a monocle claps his hands together, "a battle of the bands. We have talented musicians that would love to get their works out there in a fun sort of way. The second we get Shibuya back, thats the first event we should host. I'm sure the Landers and Adventurers both would become new fans in short order." A big smile on his face there. A competition that doesn't require beating the stuffing out of someone.

"Ah, I should ask if you still Sing," Haru points upwards as if he is making a point, "Elder Tales being what it is, without you having the skill trained up it doesnt quite jive with the world we came with." He makes a gesture of himself, "Body scan, right? In the last world, I actually had some strength. Dump the strength stat here as a caster and now my arms are one hundred percent noodle." There is a laugh, "But watch out, can do some fancy magic enchantment." The wiggling ends up drawing out four stones that gently orbit around him. "Whoops, dismiss those," and they go away.

Himari Saito makes a bit of a face at the mention of the meeting at the HQ and smiles sheepishly. "Sorry about ignoring everyone at the HQ the other day, I was actually tired. I had just arrived and needed to get some sleep. I was a zombie," she admits sheepishly. "But that's actually a pretty great idea. If Erufu introduces me to some of her friends, I can ask them if you'd like. And the girl who was playing the other day was pretty good. But I think it would be a good victory celebration to have something like that organised. You can count on me to perform."

An eager nod is then given when asked if she can Sing. "I actually can," she admits. "I don't have the range that I used to have, but I can Sing thankfully. I don't know what I would do if I couldn't." She watches as Haru summons the stones up. "I'm kind of the opposite. I used to be weak, but I've actually got a bit of strength here, and magic. Though I bet your magic is a lot stronger than mine is."

Haru looks down to Himari with a reassuring smile on his face, "I have accepted this apology, filed it, and the whole of the Alliance has agreed in record time to forgive you. Bad days are permitted and we all understnd that includes sleepy days." There is a reach over to Himari to give her a boop on her nose, "trust me when I say you were not offending anybody. Yeowang had not bathed in days, nor eatten in days or sleps." There is a grump look on his face at the thought there, "so if that didn't do it, needing a little 'you' space isn't going to bother people either. That said, since you are a caretaker of memorial sites, do me a solid and keep an eye out for members that are not engaging in self-care. It isn't that they are having an unbalanced lifestyle, but rather there are /literal/ status effects in this game that will pull you away from thinking about those things like a mad scientist." He gestures a single hand in a wide motion, "It is called a 'Weird Mood' if you've run across the term before. If you have, I'll shuddap, but its really easy for our friends to grind themselves down to nothing without a little support." And just for that reason Haru keeps cookies and juice to attack people with for emergency rations.

Although Haru has no musical talent himself, he does pull out an air guitar and give a strum to the imaginary instrument, "I think it would be good for people to up there, have some fun, and celebrate. There is plenty of woe in the world, but its important to hold hope and love in your heart to remember the world we are fighting /for/. Its too easy to lose yourself otherwise." A little bit of a smile there. He isn't invulnerable to the erosion of the last few months, either. "So I'll be counting on ya to lift up our spirits. I may do a mean karaoke, but Im no singer. I /have/ done quite a bit of Song theory here, though. I started to notice how Song is very closely tied to Enchanting, which I am pretty good at." He gives a short laugh, "I could geek out about that for a while, but the short version is: Song is cool. Enchanting is cool. Together, very cool, and all over the fabric of this world. As for magical prowess, fairly good chance of that, yes." A proud grin there, "though I can only do so much by myself. Enchanters are more of a support role. So I rely a fair amount on my summons as well as some custom Wave Artes. Like this little lady." When called so, a black cat steps out from Haru's shadow. A quick inspection shows that she isn't really a cat at all. She has two tails that flick curiously and two red eyes as dark as rubies. Her fur is not actually fur at all, but a dark, shadowy mist. This is a Dark Sprite, a monster. "Himari-chan, meet Eve. Eve," he introduces his cat who hisses at him, "is being a bit grouchy after the Shadow Festival where Dark Monsters like her had a bit more oomph behind them."

With a boop on her nose, Himari Saito pulls her head back and looks a little surprised. "I also didn't want to mention that either in case I upset her. I also kind of wanted to get away from the urge of hitting her with a spray of water." She raises a hand up and rubs sheepishly at the back of her neck. "But I'll do my best in trying to keep other members healthy and looking after themselves. I know a little bit of healing stuff, but I don't know anything about removing effects like that." She then lets her hand drop again. "And it's also the first time I've heard of that status." She pauses for a moment and then laughs. "I tend to stay away from scary places and things that give bad statuses. I think I have had the drunk one a few times."

"I have been told that Song can be rather powerful," she admits. "But I never really thought too much about it. Or worried about learning too much about it. It could be handy to learn a lot more." She also looks thoughtful at the thought of enchanting and shakes her head. "I think I'm in the middle ground. I don't think I excel in either magic or physical stuff, but then I am a spirit caller."

She gives an excited cry when the two tailed Dark Sprite steps out from behind Haru. She carefully kneels down to get a better look at the misty feline. "Awww. Who's a cute little Eve!" she coos happily.

"The drunk one is my personal favorite," Haru says thoughtfully to his recent discovery of how good a single malt rye whiskey can taste after a hard day of working. "I plan on finding that status the moment we liberate Shibuya and have just the Brewer in mind to whip something up for it." Vert makes some real good stuff, after all. "Spirit Caller, Spirit Caller," he closes the one visible blue eye to think of the class combination for that one. "Thats a Godhand subbing into Summoner, right? Im an Artificer, Enchanter sub Summoner. Hence Eve here." He gives his summon the one good eye of 'behave'.

Eve looks directly at Himari in a 'I am the darkness, I can see into your SOUL' red eyed gaze of a cat. But quickly the weakness is found. Pride. Eve swishes her head back and forth as if to say 'Thats right Im cute. The cutest of the all! A Highland of cute!' Twin tails flick. Although a monster can never truly be 'friendly', even Sprites, this one has been around Haru for so long that some of the personality is rubbing off. "I'm curious about your Summons as well, if you have some. Kau, who is a musical nightmare, uses Binders a lot. Spirits that bind themselves to objects. Setsuna and Uta are more traditional handlers, finding monsters and applying their will to them. Setsuna with undead and Uta with slimes. I use elemental sprites and its largely thanks to them I can defend myself. There is a lot of variety in handling, I find it really intesesting." Another topic the white haired human could geek out on effortlessly. "The others are Terra, Rachel, Won-qu, and Yumi. Rachel is a Firebird and Terra is a four meter tall Earth Sprite, so they are generally not city friendly. Won-qu is, well, a bit chilly as an ice lion and Yumi is shocking as a lightning pixie."

"I just drink whatever is cheap or given to me," Himari Saito admits with a soft laugh. "And yes, Godhand subbing into Summoner. I just picked at random and didn't really have much of an idea." She gives a little bit of a shrug, though her attention remains on Eve. "So we're going to have the biggest party ever when you take back Shibuya?"

"I don't really have any summons I call on to give a name," she admits. "I'd be worried that I got attached." She does raise a hand up, as if considering petting Eve, but soon lowers it and seems to decide against it. While Eve might be cute, she's still a monster after all.

"I guess you don't really have the option of punching things, especially with your noodle arms and all," she teases. She slowly stands up again, and looks up towards Haru once more. "Wow, you got some pretty big summons there."

Haru promptly responds to the tease with a flex. You mean these guns? Yes. Noodle guns. "I did punch a fish once. Pow, right in the face," he recalls the rest of the story, "past its mouth, right in its heard. But it didn't pixelate and I had a fish on my hand for, oh, a week." The saga of Noodle Arms Haru continues to this day. "It took a while for me to find the appropriate methods of summoning them. Everyone has their own groove within the laws of the system. For me, I found my love of crafting to be the key to being an Artificer. When I summon a Sprite, they come with an object to interact with as a part of their summoning. Eve is a little special, since I always had her, but she has a little moon." With a motion of his hands, the four stones come back out. They are the size of golf balls and look like liquid metal shimmering. One of them becomes a pale white, expanding to a moon which causes the cat at his feet to quickly scurry up the Enchanter's back and settle on his head. Eve begins to bat at the white stone as it circles, meowing at it predatorially. "Also the moon is normally bigger and she sleeps on it, because she is a lazy cat." Hiss. "Oh, sorry 'the best' lazy cat." Better. Preen.

"I think its okay to get attached," Haru says down to Himari with a smile, "even if it is for a short while, the time spent with them is something to cherish. Forming a bond with an animal or monster is really magical, even if loyalty can never be instilled in a monster." He points up to Eve, "if I ever relased my control of Eve, she would revert back to the Dark element as a monster. I know that, but it doesnt make her any less adorable to me." There is a grin, "And when the biggest party is thrown, she is going to be there. Shibuya means a lot to the New World Alliance. It is a place that we built from the ground up. Not me, personally, mind you, but you can see it in the old records. How hopeful and excited everyone was." A hand reaches up to scritch the black mist that is Eve, "There will always be a war, or an undead threat, or demonic gnolls, or cursed waves or any thing else of that nature. But thats not what makes our hearts skip a beat."

Haru weeble wobbles a hand as if balancing an imaginary ball atop of it, "I really dont know what it is for us right now, either, but I know Im going to find out and a Musical Event sounds like a great start. Helping clear out the Dueling arena for /safe/ and /healthy/ competition, not player killing, is also viable. Duelist League really helped me get over my hangups in combat and Im sure it'll help others, too. Crowns are coming for us and Root Towns aren't the end-all to safety anymore either." A foot taps on the ground of Ouph, as Root Town that they are stationed to monitor and protect. "Probably know the answer to this one, but done any work with the Duelist League or Hunter's Guild before? If nothing else the later is a really nice way to meet people, see new places, and get some spending money. Accessory Forging can get expensive, quick," he laughs, his primary vocation there alongside Enchanting.

Himari Saito blinks and stares at Haru when he mentions having a fish stuck on his hand. "Wow! I've heard of Godhands before, but never a Fishhand. You should be thankful you didn't end up with a custom class," she teasingly adds. "Puncher of fishes. On the bright side, you could enjoy fresh sashimi!" She then pauses for a moment, glances away and then looks back towards the taller man. "Why did you punch a fish anyway? In fact, how do you even end up in a situation where punching a fish is needed?"

She then snickers softly and then laughs. "I understand it's fine to get attached. Just not with a fish. On your hand." She shakes her head once again, as she looks up again. "But bad jokes aside, if I did call out my summon, I'm worried that it might upset some of the Landers." She absently runs a hand over the letters that she carries and then glances down yet again. "Oh, I have figured out there's always going to be some danger. I do my best to stay away from the danger. But you'll get Shibuya back."

She then looks thoughtful as she considers what was said about the Alliance. "I think it's more than just a place," she says softly. "In fact, it's more than just a place. You have people who believe in it, and it's the people that make it something." She then falls silent for a few moments and shakes her head. "Oh, uh, no. I've never got involved in either of those. The closest I've been to doing anything for the Hunting Guild was to sign up with them. Then I decided it might be safer to just... Not go."

"You look pretty capable from where I'm standing," Haru says, notably he stands pretty tall so he has a good view, "so if you are feeling up to it sometime, we could go see whats what on some of the more interesting request. One was a Haunted Mansion. Legit. Could you imagine how helpful having a /Spirit Caller/ would be in a /Haunted Mansion/?" The white haired man puts his hands to the side of his face and makes the 'mind blown' animation in slow motion. "Hey, you might be able to call the spirit of the fish who nommed on my hand. The way of the Noodle Fist is frought with peril," he begins with bad dubbing, "for fish find noodles delicious and nibblish. They might go for your leaf, too."

A sharp finger snap as he realizes the whole fish story detail. "So you know how Undines are an underwater race? Well we ran across old Undine ruins during a festival which allowed for a low-tide exploration. It came with angry fish. I punched one. Was it smart? Questionable. Was it fun? Very much so. More than the Ash Wight hunt that happened recently. I think everyone is going to need extra strong booze or therapy before all that settles down."

The man with the monocle winks to Himaari. Or its a blink. When there is only one visible eye it is hard to tell. Haru asks, "Curious though, why avoid the danger? Hearing me say that out loud seems pretty silly, but Adventurers can't die per say. We do lose something precious, so people shouldn't be careless with their lives, but it still gives us the opportunities to take risks for the right reasons. Like building a better world. Or, if you happen to be a fan of The Beautiful One goddess, there are a few shrines that are a bit out of the way with monsters but really something."

Himari Saito puffs her cheeks out at the talk of haunted houses and spirit callers, and stares up at Haru again. "Hey, leave my leaf alone! Besides, I wouldn't lose to a fish either!" She jabs the air a couple of times with her free hand to demonstrate her point. "I'd punch it so hard, it'd be sashimi!" She gives a nod of her head, and grins. "I think the fish would also complain about a noodle it couldn't eat."

Once again she falls silent as she listens to Haru speak, though she does give a little nod now and then to show that she's still listening. "See, and that's why I'm a coward who hides. So I don't need therapy. I'll take the strong booze though." She looks thoughtful, and might actually be considering something.

"I guess going into danger could save more of the Landers," she then reluctantly admits. "I can't say I've gone to any of the Beautiful One's shrines. Well the ones that are out of the way that is. Maybe I might tag along on a hunt?" She looks down to the letters again, and then glances towards the HQ. "It's been nice meeting you Haru. I really should deliver these and see if there's anything that needs to go out."

Haru raises a hand to offer a quick wave, "You know, I /have/ been talking your ear off, Himari-chan, we will just have to continue this another time. On the open road. During /adventure/." He makes a big sweep of his hand like he is summoning the word 'adventure' from the palm. "Until then, keep up the good work. Also," he throws a friend request over, "feel free to chim me. World is a lot brighter with friendly people like you in it."