[GM's preface, and a call to arms!]

The play-by-email anime-themed RPG "White Temple" is looking for a
small number of new players. It has been running for nearly three
years, with vibrant characters and a dynamic underlying plot. However,
right now we feel the need for some fresh talent, and are recruiting
from the best place we can think of: The FFML, where scores of talented
writers hang out. [Editor's note: Yes, i did get permission from an FFML
administrator before posting this, and there _is_ actual improvisational
fanfic writing in this post, so please try to keep the public cries of
outrage
to a minimum...]

Any responses should be sent BY PRIVATE REPLY to
eimii@metacrawler.com; don't spam the FFML with replies to this,
please ^_^;! If anybody wants to C&C our little writing sample later on
in the post... well, that'd be a really pleasant surprise, but we're not
expecting any miracles. This is an original affair, after all; no
pre-existing
anime characters make more than the occasional name-dropping cameo
in this game...

White Temple is set in a fictional upper-class Japanese university of
the same name, and in the near future. White Temple is the school of
choice for the progeny of diplomats, captains of industry, celebrities
and other modern royalty. Understandably, it is therefore also a hotbed
of intrigue and scandal. Beyond this, though, through the course of the
game it has been revealed that there is more going on behind the scenes
than imagined; perhaps even something mystical.

In the end, though, White Temple is a game about people and the
relationships between them. This is a communal anime-themed novel,
where all the characters play a part. What we're looking for are
character submissions from prospective players, students whom you
believe would fit in well with the setting and the existing cast, and
would readily be able to form friendships, rivalries, or other
relationships with the people of White Temple. Male characters are
preferred, as we have a small imbalance at the moment, but not
mandatory.

If you are considering submitting a character, please read through the
attached sample from the game. Sexual themes do occur fairly often, as
the cast are young adults experiencing the freedom of going away to
school, but the game is not a forum for cybering. The innuendo often
gets hot and heavy, but any hanky-panky happens off screen.
Homosexuality is also present. Sometimes the game contains physical or
emotional violence.  Sometimes it contains wacky slapstick hijinks. We
strive for depth in our portrayal of our characters.  If any of what I
have described, or you find in the sample text is not to your liking,
perhaps our game is not for you.

If White Temple sounds like something you'd enjoy participating in,
please send me a character submission. Submissions should contain a
detailed description of the character, both physical and mental. Also
include background, motivations, degree program in the school and future
plans. Some ideas in regards to why the character has not interacted
with the cast previous to his introduction, ideas for introduction and
suggestions as to why and how the character would join the cast's
'active circle' would be more than welcome.

All player characters are university students at the prestigious White
Temple Academy. This massive complex educates those lucky or wealthy
enough to be selected, from primary school right through to
post-graduate, though new students may enter at any level. How long you
have been a student here is up to you, as is whether or not any of your
family is or has been here. You may be studying pretty much anything,
and be a member of just about any club, within reason. Just keep in mind
the more obscure the program or club, the fewer people will be in it
with you.




[White Temple Academy Description, by John Evans, GM]

White Temple Academy is the most prestigious school in the country. It
is situated far from any major cities, and skirts the north shore of a
picturesque mountain lake. The nearest populated area is a town to the
northwest, which is separated and concealed from the school by a ridge
of hills. Viewed from across the lake, White Temple seems to be the only
touch of man's hand in the world.

The school follows the north shore of the lake in a shallow crescent
shape. It is laid out such that the levels of school and their
associated buildings progress from primary school in the east, to
university in the west. Each section is largely independent, with it's
own class buildings, dorms, staff buildings, etc. The sections are
separated by a series of wholly symbolic arched gates, which cannot be
closed. Much ceremony is made at graduations of the advancing students
passing these gates. Each section is approximately the same size, though
the later ones harbor fewer students. This is because the later sections
become more sophisticated, including such things as research libraries,
cafes, lounges, shopping areas, and post-graduate facilities.

At the gate from high-school to university, there is a cafe called
"Swan". This cafe is so called due to it's remarkable 'patio'. In a
graceful arch, a spire of stonework stretches over the university-side
courtyard associated with the gate, culminating in a small open-air
platform with three small tables and some chairs. This preposterous
construction somehow exists, and has been declared by the student
council to be theirs, exclusively. From this vantage, they observe the
comings and goings through the gate, and in the courtyard (which is a
much-used common area).

The other major landmark is the Temple Tower. At the very westernmost
tip of the campus is the main administration building, and rising from
this well above any other building on campus is a tower. Topping this
tower is the surprisingly large mock-up of a Greek temple, which gives
the school it's name. From this point you could see everything that
happened in the school, and perhaps even into the town. Other buildings
include dorms of various designs and qualities (apartment style,
barracks style (mostly in the public school section), suite style, and
even some house-style. There are also various lecture halls, a mall, a
student center (which houses club offices and the newspapers), faculty
residences, a sports complex, and such.

Uniforms (standard Japanese-type) are mandatory up until the end of high
school. University students have a dress-code (not a uniform) when in
class or any school-oriented task (talking to the administration) but
can dress as they like on their own time.




[White Temple At-A-Glance: For your use during character creation, here
is a bare-bones reference card of most of the notable characters at
White
Temple and the most talked-about issues around campus recently.]

Currently active Player Characters and important Non-Player Characters:

Yutaro Onnanigero - Reluctant Campus Prettyboy. Yutaro captures hearts
wherever he goes; alarmingly so, as he has dozens of active and
potentially dangerous stalkers after him. Very quiet and introspective,
Yutaro is studying interior design and decorating. Rumours about Yutaro
are nearly uncountable in number, but almost universally false. Nobody
is entirely sure how he got accepted into White Temple, though most
speculation revolves around a gymnastics scholarship. Yutaro is better
than good, and the gymnastics coach seems to have olympic ambitions for
him.

Hikari Iyakawa - Hikari is a beauty, though she seems ever so slightly
absent upstairs. Hikari makes friends easily, and is usually beaming a
bright smile. However, her looks and charm are not universally welcomed.
Some jealous women consider her a shameless flirt. A number of even more
catty rumours about her relationships are also circulating. Hikari is in
White Temple on a music scholarship, but rumour has it her marks are
less than stellar, whatever that implies.

Hotaru Akayami - Also quite beautiful, but very intelligent. Friendly
and outgoing, she nevertheless intimidates some people. Got into White
Temple on an Audio-Visual Arts scholarship. Studying writing, she's
working as a reporter for "The Hermes," one of three campus newspapers.
There are no rumours about her current relationships, but a lot of
people think she looks familliar. Maybe they've seen her on TV?

Saffron Yamakaze - Dark-skinned and exotic, this half-foreigner is liked
all over campus. Genuinely friendly, she's always there for people. In
White Temple courtesy of her father's money, Saffron is studying
business; she intends to open her own premium frozen dessert company
some day. Rumours have tied her romantically to Hasamoto, who has also
been seen with Hikari. More disturbingly, a recent rumour suggests
Saffron is being 'used' by Kouran.

Maya Oku - Brilliant but socially akward redhead. Graduated early from
high school, and now waits for the beginning of next semester to take
University courses. Currently working as a waitress at the swankiest
cafe on campus. Also volounteers as a helper for the University's Art
and Design club. Well known to be hot-tempered and aggressive. Her
current romantic situation is unknown, though Derek, the student council
vice-president, has been unusually kind to her when they've met.

Shiro Mizuhara - Usually somewhat dishelved, Shiro would rather be
comfortable than 'classy'. A partial art scholarship and frantic
part-time jobbing just barely keeps him in White Temple. A talented
photographer, he works for "The Hermes" and has collaborated on stories
with Hotaru, though they're known to have had a falling-out with each
other. Shiro has also been seen with Shion, who is also a photographer.
They seem to get along fairly well as artists and friends. He has also
been publicly beaten up by Kouran more than once; those two seem to be
near-mortal enemies.

Kouran Saionji - A giant of a woman, and pale as death. More or less
universally feared and reviled accross campus, apart from a small circle
of associates and some faintly disturbing groupies. There is a widely
confirmed rumour that she sufferes bizzarre mood swings and loss of
memory from time to time. She's been seen engaging in wildly diverse
activities, from traditional archery and flower arranging to highly
experimental chemical engineering. Everyone is too intimidated to
question her on the subject, though. There are exactly two, polarized
rumours about her relationships, depending on who you ask. Kouran is
considered either as chaste as a nun, or to be some sort of S&M queen
with a harem of both men and women who serve her.

Kotomi Aoyama - a very traditional Japanese girl. Shy, polite and
formal. Her family is quite influential, having contacts in government,
the military and religion (shinto), and it was this influence that
allowed her to enter White Temple, where she studies chemistry. Kotomi
is very busy with her duties to her family shrine and, recently, the
track team. While this doesn't seem to leave her time to become
romantically involved with anyoe, the track team seems to have been a
good choice; in the last few weeks, a new energy has been seen in her
posture and eyes.

Setsuna Arisugawa - Red-headed and very cute, Setsuna has attracted a
lot of attention around campus; an event that has left the shy girl
frequently flustered. Studying Education on a full academic
scholarship. Known to be very warm and caring, if a bit naive. Setsuna
seems to be very shy and akward around men, so it's assumed she's not in
any sort of relationship at the moment.

Epiphany Clarriss - Tall, athletic blonde girl. While moderately
attractive, Epiphany a) has a fairly plain figure and b) hangs around
Setsuna and Hikari, and as a result tends to have male attention drawn
away from her. Studying psychology. Due to some complications, she was a
week or so late starting school; a side effect of this was her being
roomed with Saffron, who's first roommate dropped out of school amidst a
flurry of strange rumours.

Christian Park - A blue-eyed asian, Christian attracts a fair amount of
attention. A Korean/Danish mix, his exotic blended features make him
quite handsome... or they would if he wasn't so sloppy. Christian is
studying literature, language and computer science. He got into White
Temple by way of money, though rumour has it it wasn't from his family.
Who bought the ticket isn't known, and Christian doesn't volounteer the
information. Christian is considered a bit flighty; he's often been seen
crashing into people and things because he's lost in thought. He also
seems to keep a journal, and writes things into it at the oddest times.

Shion Michozuchi - A photographer in the Art and Design club, in White
Temple studying art and journalism thanks to family influence. Very
athletic looking, with short hair and muscular (though not overly so)
limbs. Shion is a bit of an enigma, seemingly friendly, but with a lot
of secrets. May be devloping feelings for Shiro; the two are often seen
working on projects together, and sharing tips and tricks. Rumour has it
she's recently had a bad falling-out with her family, and may be forced
to drop out of school.

Hasamoto Ichiro - Rich, handsome son of a rich, handsome business man.
Studying business, he has several classes with Saffron, whom he's
started to date. Has ALSO been rumoured to be dating Hikari. Wether the
two women know this is going on is unknown.

Other campus rumours:

The Prankster - Not a rumour itself, but a source of countless ones.
Somebody has been terrorizing and vandalizing campus, but often in very
strange ways. For example: setting tripwires up... on the roofs of
buildings. A few people have been injured, and stepped-up security has
recently decreased the incidents.

Ninjas - Strange figures in black have been seen moving around the
school at night, in small groups. They're most likely just night joggers
who
get around the need for bright, reflective clothing by running in places
where cars, bicyclists, and other things don't go, like the tops of
buildings.

Steam Tunnels - there is known to be an extensive network of maintenance
tunnels underground, all over campus. Rumours about what they connect
to, and what's hidden down there, are everywhere. The official word from
campus maintenance is that such a sprawling, subterranean network
doesn't
exist at all, and even if it did, good students shouldn't be down there
anyway.

Secret Society - Many presigious schools are supposed to have shadowy,
invitation-only groups that pull strings around the world, White Temple
being a notable exception. There are absolutely no secret societies of
any
kind at White Temple... really, none at all.




[Writing Sample; all game posts can be found at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Anime_Freeform_RPG]

[Editor's note, by Eimii: This is a compilation of the writings of
several authors. They were taken from the recent "Fright Night"
Halloween game threads, circa post #7263, spanning over 100 separate
messages in just this small excerpt. As such, while i've tried to render
them into a format that's readable and mostly understandable even taken
out of context, one should keep in mind that the writing style might
change suddenly, and somewhat dramatically at times (though all writing
takes place in past tense, third person, reader semi-omniscient prose).
Anyhow, i hope you enjoy reading of our characters' trials and travails,
and find something here that you might like to participate in
yourself. An example character profile will follow the story...]




The night of Halloween had finally arrived.

The sun was beginning to set, and all across campus was frantic
activity. Students were turning their dorm rooms into haunted houses,
common rooms were being set up as dance halls, and diverse debutantes
were dissembling as devils. Masquerades seemed uncommonly popular at
this school.

Even the cafe Swan was decked to the nines: It had been renamed 'Snake
Mountain' for the night, and the soaring patio had been cleverly
disguised so it looked the part; Quinn contentedly poured theme
cocktails and hot Java 'black bile.' Every dorm had a party, and
Sakura-Ryou's promised to be a good one; and many of the dorm's suites
had been set up for the night, or had their own parties going.

In one of those rooms Hikari was, of course, enjoying being the center
of attention with her 'Lara Croft, Graverobber' outfit. On occasion she
felt the urge to push crates into the corner to create a stairway to the
second floor. Finding no crates, she managed to resist things rather
well.

In fact, she had tied up Indiana Jones to a banister and promised to
rescue him later. Now, if she could only remember where she'd tied him
up. Oh well... She decided should really check on Setseuna soon- OH! and
ask Saffron about her third costume.

Back to business, the mirrored shades weighed the plastic canteen in her
hand carefully in their convex reflections. The golden bottle rested
atop the pedestal, just out of reach. Gently. geeeeently...

"... and so I was saying to Ted. Like YEAH! New year we will SO thrash
them in th fin - HEY! What're you doing!"

*Damn fratboys.*

*****

*My God, I can't believe people actually get paid to DO this.* Shiro
dwelled slightly before raising the camera to his eyes. "Ok girls, LET'S
strike a good pose for the cover eh? You could be on the front page of
the Hermes! One! Two! <ka-click>" The trio of girls posed outrageously,
collapsing into a fit of giggles before they waved him off.

His assignment, should he choose to accept it: get as many shots as he
could of Temple personalities as they paraded around and reveled the
night away in costume. Carte blanche for the night on film. Heck, people
were already asking him for copies. There was a business opportunity
here if he looked carefully. Life didn't get much better than this. And
as for his costume...

His head whipped around as his nose caught the scent of Channel No 5 and
a short skirt off in the distance. *Hrm, my spider-sense is tingling.*
Well, something was tingling.

Just entering the room, Saffron, jingling merrily in her 'Koomba,
Warrior Priestess' costume, was carrying tray after tray of treats to
the Sakura-Ryou common room with Epiphany's help. She was also thinking
warmly of the two other costumes she was planning to wear sometime
before morning.

Epiphany was wearing what looked like hi-tech body armor with
strategically ripped cammo-pants, and she'd spent almost an hour in the
bathroom, sculpting her hair into a wild mass of spikes. With both hands
occupied holding trays she'd hung her black painted supersoaker off a
buckle on the back of her armor and her eyes were hidden behind round
framed sunglasses.

Setsuna had spent most of the late afternoon and early evening missing
in action; she'd spent much of it throwing her attention onto a paper
meche sword and off of the weirdness that was the last 24 hours, as well
as trying to talk herself into wearing Kouran's coat. (The conversation
she had with herself went much like this: "She said you could use it."
"But do I want to anymore?" "But you promised Yosei-chan you would."
"But this will be so weird." "No, it's not that weird." "Yes it is!"
"Well, she said you could use it!" "But do I...")

In the end, it appeared she'd made her choice. She came downstairs with
a platter of Bat Brownies in one hand, Kouran's dramatic overcoat
hitched up and belted such that it was ankle length on her frame, a
cardboard weapon strapped to her back, and a wonderfully bubbly fruity
concoction in the other hand that someone who lived down the hall had
handed her earlier. From the slightly dopey grin on her face, and the
way she was bobbing slightly off beat to the thumping music, it was
likely she hadn't figured out what she'd been ingesting just yet.

Maya scratched the back of her head, watching the other girl, laughing
slightly. Was she always like this? Without saying a word, she took the
brownies from Setsuna.

'Rain McCloud' wasn't far enough gone to not realize where her
contribution to the snack table had fled. She flashed Maya a megawatt
grin. "Thank you, Oku-san," she enthused. "This coat is so heavy, it has
me a little off balance. I think Kouran-san must have free weights in
here somewhere!"

Well, though the coat did contribute to her 'off'-ness, it undoubtedly
wasn't the only reason. The redhead had been careful to keep all the
pockets buttoned/zippered or otherwise closed since earlier; it wouldn't
be responsible to lose any of her roommate's things, and she knew she'd
said she wouldn't look through it, so she couldn't take anything out.
"Come on! I'll introduce you to some of my friends!"

The redhead maneuvered her way through the room towards the table,
opening up a path for Maya towards the snack bar. Intentionally or
otherwise, Setsuna missed or misconstrued the 'oh my god, that's
Saionji's coat! Does she have a death wish?!' looks she was getting. She
spotted 'Koomba' and 'Ripped Leah' and waved frantically to them.
"Yosei-chan! Epiphany-chan!"

She did a double take when she got a closer look at her friends. She
looked at Saffron. "S-s-s-!" She tried. She looked at Epiphany.
"S-s-s-!" She looked back at Saffron. "SSSUGOI!!" She finally squealed
with delight. "Oooooh, look at you two!! You guys look AMAZING!

"Epiphany's hair is so kakkoii!! And Yosei-chan is... Yosei-chan is..."
The redhead opened and closed her mouth a few times before giving up to
a fit of blushes and giggles. "Yosei-chan is going to give everyone
whiplash!" The giggles ended in a slight grimace when her hand
accidentally brushed against the large bruise on her jaw while covering
her mouth politely. Her good spirits were strong though, and the action
didn't even register in her mind as her expression bounced back into a
grin.

"Saa, it's just a costume Shushi-chan," Saffron protested. "Everyone
looks amazing tonight, so I'm nothing special." She walked around the
table and the room's lights shone off her hips.

Next Setsuna drew the girls' attention to Maya. "Guys, this is Oku
Maya-san! She's going to be starting with us next semester! Oku-san,
this is Yamakaze Saffron-san, and Clarris Epiphany-san!"

Maya shyly came up to Setsuna's friends, bowing. "Nice to meetcha." She
said to them, pushing her blonde wig back onto her head. She had decided
to be Celes from Final Fantasy 6, thinking it would be easy to do.

"Konbanwa, Oku-san!" Saffron bowed before continuing to spread out the
snack buffet. "I remember seeing you at the Art and Design Club
emergency meeting. Pleased to meet you. What are you drinking,
Shushi-chan? It looks tasty."

"It certainly does. Where can I get one?" asked Hotaru.

At least, it was Hotaru's voice. The speaker was roughly three inches
taller than Hotaru, and boasted shoulder-length blonde hair, startlingly
blue eyes, and a fairly voluptuous build. She was dressed in tight,
clingy black slacks, a low-cut, cleavage-exposing cream top, and an open
leather jacket, with a crucifix around her neck. But it was the
trademark silver dagger, gleaming in one hand, that tipped the costume
identity: 'Wendy the Werewolf Killer,' battler against miscellaneous
supernatural evils and promoter of semi-ironic pop-culture references.

"Hi, guys," Hotaru said, smiling kittenishly. "That's a terrific
costume, Saffron-chan! And the coat looks good on Setsuna-chan.
Epiphany-chan got the hair perfect, too! It looks like this theme idea
is a success."

Maya nodded, through not recognizing the persons voice. "Everyone has
such  great costumes, I'm jealous!"

"Wai!" Saffron pumped her hands in the air, setting her... costume... to
jiggling- er, jingling. Nearby, a zombie spilled his drink on himself.

"I'm so glad the idea worked out! I wonder if Saionji-san is going to
participate?"

Looking over at her suitemate, Setsuna boggled, and then boggled again,
before asking in awe, "H-Hotaru-chan? Is that you? Sugoi...!"

Hotaru grinned cheerfully. "The wonders of modern makeup, Setsuna-chan.
Let me know if you want to try it some time, ne?"

The scream accelerated out of the distance like a closing siren with a
similar sense of urgency, followed by rolling thunder that managed to
silence a fair number of conversations, this one included.

Taking the steps four at a time, the pair of brown hiking boots were
quickly followed by two healthy streaks of creamy white leg. These were
tailed by quite a piece of, er... tail in tight brown shorts, an
aquamarine tank top and a pair of sunglasses (that were clinging to
their owner for dear life). She hit the landing at a run, executing a
flip-and-tumble to the side as the thunder, a crazed pack of fratboys,
steamrolled down the stairs and out the door followed by a large,
12-foot multicolored, inflatable beachball.

Some pop culture traditions had to be budgeted.

After panting for a moment on the floor, Hikari got up and brushed the
hair out of her eyes, ponytail whipping back and forth. She popped the
cap to her Heineken with the trigger guard on one of her twin 45's while
walking up to Setsuna et al.

<si-pop, fizzle> "Hi guys! Great party eh?!"

Saffron picked her jaw up off the floor. "Sugooooooooi."

Setsuna had to be the lone clapper in the room, which had gone back to
its partying after the horde had exited en masse. A few guys 'tsked' at
the antics of the football players; it wasn't every day that Sakura-ryou
opened her doors so freely after all. But it would be easy to get in
again anyway, so it wasn't that big a deal.

"Hikari-chan!" The silly redhead cried, grabbing Hikari's hands. "That
was GREAT! I didn't know you could do gymnastics!" Grinning madly at
Maya, she introduced, "Oku-san, this is Iyakawa Hikari-chan! And I think
you already knew Hotaru-chan, mmm?"

"H-Hai!" Maya answered nervously. "From the art club and the Swan."

"Nice entrance, Hikari-chan." Hotaru nodded, offering a quick thumbs-up.
"And a 6.5 from the Russian judge." She winked.

A pair of aquamarine eyes popped up from behind drooping shades. "Are?"

Grinning dopily at Hotaru and Saffron, Setsuna finally remembered
Hotaru's question and went on to say, "I'm not sure what this is, but
Yukari-chan from 217 said she invented it! She and Nyamo-chan have a lot
of really cute looking drinks upstairs! I'll go see if they have
anymore, okay?" Without anyone really answering her through, she'd
already squeezed Hikari's hand 'be right back!' and was making her
slightly wobbly way toward the stairs.

Saffron jumped in startlement, and quickly moved to Setsuna's side. "If
they want to share, wouldn't it be better if we brought a tray, so we
can bring the drinks down to the common room? Ne? Ne?" Saffron turned to
Hotaru and Hikari and discreetly made an 'OK' gesture. She would try to
prevent Setsuna from drinking where the more experienced girls couldn't
watch over her.

"... Cute-looking?" Hotaru chuckled to herself as Saffron paused to
steady the redhead. "Ah, it's going to be a good night."

"So desu ne!" Hikari piped cheerfully.

Gazing with unfocused eyes toward stairs, Setsuna wasn't quite as
ignorant of her condition as she seemed, as she pondered her reasons
behind accepting that first drink. *This can hardly be called
responsible, you know, getting yourself drunk. And for what reason?

*Hmm? But I don't know what it is I'm drinking.

*Oh please, it's not too hard to figure out if you put some thought into
it.

*... maybe. But if I put too much thought into it, the entire world will
fall apart, and that can't be good, right?

*Well, if a world can fall apart at the seams because of a little brain
power, then it can't be a very well constructed world, now can it? It's
only going to be a matter of time before it goes, and you should know by
now that shoving things onto the back burners until they reach massive
proportions is never a good thing.

*... maybe... but right now, I think the important thing is to answer
Yosei-chan's question, because she's starting to look at me strangely.*

The distant look finally fled Setsuna's eyes, and she nodded stupidly at
her friend. "Mmm... I think I saw some trays up in their room," she
replied. "Hehe... good thinking, Yosei-chan! I'm glad one of our brains
is fully functioning!" Saffron could only squeeze back quickly before
Setsuna started using her hand for balance again.

"Saa, Hotaru chan," Hikari said to Hotaru, but looking to everyone in
general, "I think Setsuna is going to have another one of those nights.
Shimpai shinai." She thumbed-up. "I'll keep an eye on her.

"I knew I could count on you, Hikari-chan." Hotaru nodded to Maya as
well. "Konbanwa. I didn't see you there. Are you and your friends
enjoying the party?"

Undaunted by the interruption, Hikari continued to regard the blonde
girl. "-But Oku... oku... AH! Wakatta! Maya-chan, hisashiburi! I haven't
seen you since the time when we were all called into the office together
after that riot on club day, ne Yosei-chan? Genki desu ka?" She took a
swig of beer. Sometimes it was fun to drop bombs just to see how they
exploded.

"Sou?" Saffron examined Maya more carefully "Honto! It was you. How have
you been?" Saffron giggled. "It seems the meeting was almost destined,
ne?" The toy wizard's staff that was part of Saffron's costume let of a
peal of tinny thunder.

"I'm fine.." Maya replied, kind of startled. She didn't expect to see so
many people she knew... or that they were close to Setsuna. Putting her
hand behind her head, she glanced back at Hikari, trying not to sound
surprised. "How are you?"

Hikari tipped her bottle in salute. It _was_ going to be an interesting
evening.

To make things more interesting, a colored smoke bomb went off by the
door. With a recorded fanfare, Temple Ranger Blue and Temple Ranger
Green appeared, striking dramatic poses. Infinitely more discreetly, two
kurokos slipped in and took up positions near the spandex superheroes.

The kurokos unfurled an 'Official Campus Event Security Team Temple
Ranger' banner between them. However, while doing so they'd been unable
to prevent Ranger Blue from adding something more bilious over top of
their low-lying dry ice cloud.

"Seigi no Yuusha, Temple Rangers! We've heard that a group of students
were driven from this building by a dangerous woman. Show yourself!"

The glasses dropped about an inch off the bridge of Hikari's nose as she
stared slack jawed. Backing up a few steps (and keeping slightly out of
a certain person's line of sight), she quickly pointed out Hotaru as the
culprit.

Epiphany looked at the Temple Rangers and boggled. Then she turned to
the other girls and said, in an overly loud stage whisper, "I think the
Rainbow Brights over there are getting a little too much into their
costumes."

Hikari palmed her pointing hand to cover her mouth stifling a loud
giggle.

Hotaru nodded. "Or too little into them, maybe. Don't they know spandex
shows everything?" Hotaru backed up as she talked, drawing Epiphany and
Hikari after her by their wrists. "Or about using smoke bombs indoors?
Well, obviously not. C'mon, let's get into the next room before they
learn..." Sure enough, a few seconds later, the smoke detectors set off
the automatic sprinklers, dousing the Temple Rangers and anyone else so
unfortunate as to still be in the room.

With an audible double-blink, Hikari burst out into laughter. "Good call
Hotaru. I owe ya one." She thumbed her tight blue top. "This top gets a
little bit revealing when wet." The cold water coming down brought a
chill air to the room they'd backed into. Hikari was getting cold; you
could 'tell,' especially if you had a zoom lens <click>.

People left behind rushed into drier areas while off somewhere, camera
clicks could be heard. It would also appear that some of the glue
necessary to hold the costumes in place with a semblance of decency was
er... water soluble. Subsequently, more camera clicks could be heard.

Snickering safely from the dry confines of an open ground-floor window,
Shiro/Spidey snapped up a couple more shots of the sentai and those
rushing out. "I can picture it now. 'Sakura dorm party: wash out'."

The dry room chosen as a refuge by the majority of the group was
supposed to be a quiet, cool-down lounge for later in the night when
people had overpartied themselves. Nobody expected it to be occupied
this early, yet they came across a man pacing nervously. He was wearing
leather pants so tight they had laces down the legs; and two round
cutouts in the back allowed his cheeks some air. Leather straps crossed
his chest in an X-pattern, and he was accessorized with cuffs and
collar. He was _very_ startled when everyone stormed in.

Spidey took a head count of everyone who dodged in. *Girls, check; more
girls, check; Hotaru in tight outfit... check. <mutter-mutter> Maybe she
doesn't recognize me with the costume on? Freaky dude in leather, UH!
Check; I don't know if I really wanna shot a of him, <shudder> could
warp my lens*

*****

"Wa-AH!" Setsuna found herself teetering as the sudden onslaught of
people from behind shoved her off balance. For a brief moment, the
events of the library surfaced in her mind, and for the first time that
evening, her eyes went clear and alert. She flattened herself and
Saffron against the wall, trying to get out of harm's way, the weight of
the coat aiding her momentum.

... well, that probably implied too much control of the situation.

Let's try again with more accuracy:

"Wa-AH!" Setsuna found herself teetering as the sudden onslaught of
people from behind shoved her off balance. For a brief moment, the
events of the library surfaced in her mind, and for the first time that
evening, her eyes went clear and alert. She tried to flatten herself and
Saffron against the wall and out of harm's way, but the ungainliness of
the coat prompted her to flatten herself _against_ Saffron _and_ the
wall, and not entirely out of harm's way...

*See, if you hadn't spent the entire day turning off your brain, you'd
be able to think of something more productive than how pretty Saffron's
eyes are up close.

*Oh, shut up.*

A little while later, amidst the chaos that surrounded them, a wickedly
blushing Setsuna pulled her lips off of Saffron's with a wet <smack!>

*Oh my,...* <ka-click> * ...God.* Shiro could almost feel his eyes
bulging behind the spider mask. And Hotaru was right, Spandex DOES show
everything.

Epiphany looked at Setsuna and her roommate, and a smile crept across
her face. For a moment she considered applauding, but from the look on
Setsuna's face she'd probably die of blushing, so instead she just
smiled, pumped her supersoaker in a pseudo-menacing fashion and started
passing out snacks again.

After what seemed like forever, the dark-skinned girl finally reacted.
"KIYAAAAA!" Saffron slapped both palms onto Setsuna's chest and
straight-armed the redhead away from her. Setsuna did a classic
triple-back-flip-half-turn that would've made Yutaro look twice,
followed by a
crash-land-with-her-head-in-a-garbage-can-ouch-that-will-cost-you-points
-landing. A moment later, though, Saffron dashed over and helped her
friend up off the ground. "I'm so sorry Shushi-chan! I was just so
startled!"

Hikari looked between Epiphany and Hotaru. The former apparently
approved. The later, was scrutinizing the situation. Hikari scribbled a
mental note to herself and rushed to Setsuna's side. "Suna-chan!
Daijobu?!"

For her part, the former projectile in question couldn't decide whether
she wanted to take the can off her head, or keep it on. Finally, she
cautiously peered out from under the metal can, looking something like a
red light bulb with the lampshade skewed. The look she gave both Saffron
and Hikari was one of guilty mortification.

"She's all right," Hotaru assured Hikari, having put two and two
together. "Just a bit startled. But probably not as much as
Saffron-chan, ne?" A quick smile, to try to help ease the tension. "And
what about you, Saffron-chan? Daijobu?"

"Daijo-"

"GOMEN NASAI, YOSEI-CHAN!" The garbage can fell back over her head with
a *thunk* when Setsuna released it to grab onto Saffron's hands. She
ripped the offending helmet off her head and hastily set it down beside
her before looking at the battle sorceress again. Frantically, she tried
to make things better.

"Someone pushed me and I thought we were going to get trampled over and
I tried to get us out of the way but it didn't work that way and it was
an accident and I wasn't trying to take advantage of you really I'm not
that kind of person, I would've ask if it was alright first or well
maybe that time I didn't but I really really thought that was a dream
even though that's a really poor excuse and I'm going to have to
apologize to her too but that's really not the point here although it is
similar but right now I'll take full responsibility and I'm REALLY
REALLY REALLY SORRY!!"

"-buuuuu" Saffron's eyes spun under the verbal assault. It wasn't clear
how much of Setsuna's rush of words Saffron had actually heard, but she
gave her red-headed friend's hands a reassuring squeeze. "It's okay,
Shushi-chan. Of course I know you didn't mean it. I was just surprised."
The dark skinned girl stood and helped her friend up. "I hope nobody
took a photo of that, or anything. Somebody might start nasty rumors
about us."

A look of hurt confusion passed through Setsuna's expression at the
disdain she thought she heard in Saffron's voice. *Nasty...?* It didn't
last long however.

"It's okay, Setsuna-chan. She didn't mean it that way." Hotaru patted
Setsuna's shoulder (and for once, didn't have to reach very far up to do
it...), while nodding at Saffron. "Don't worry. I don't think there are
many cameras around. Besides, I'm sure anyone who tried to embarrass you
or Setsuna-chan would come to regret it."

Behind his mask, Shiro caught himself in a half sneeze. *Damn October
weather. Hope I ain't getting a cold. Setsuna's either a lesbian or
'way-too-drunk' and Koomba don't like it, check (better save a roll for
that one); Color coordinated geek team, check; ninjas... f-&^$#! Almost
looks like that ninja-bitch from the other night! (Mental note to self:
check that film).* Snapping shots like mad, Shiro tried to be as
inconspicuous as a person wearing a spandex Spiderman suit in a room
full of girls in tight costumes and one freak in a leather gimp outfit
could possibly be...

<click... click... click...>

Ringing through the discontented din that filled the secondary party
room, the sound pierced the walls of Sakura-ryou like a bullet.
<click... click... click...> With the patient, regular rhythm of a
ticking clock, it counted down, coming ever closer as the beat vibrated
through the floorboards. <Click... Click... Click...>

Those closest to the door realized after a moment that people were no
longer leaving the main room, instead turning and staring quietly in the
direction of the one sound that ruled the silence. <CLICK... CLICK...
CLICK...> Then, as the clocks of White Temple finally struck eight in a
mournful chorus (which had been coordinated to add a bit more mood to
this special night), it reached the door, and everything stopped.

Deep black and buffed to a warm shine, the dress looked like midnight in
leather as it clung sensuously to every graceful curve of the tall
woman's frame. After descending almost endlessly down her long legs, it
tapered nearly to a point before flaring again to flow like lazy silk in
the train that pooled at her feet. Apparently some of the extensive
material used below had been borrowed from above, however. Sleeveless
and strapless, the dress split in twain at the waspish curve of her
waist, framing her navel in a diamond-shaped cut at the bottom of a
precipitously plunging neckline.

In the back a similar divide descended to her tailbone, and the two
halves were crossed several times by artfully arranged leather straps
that secured at silver studs and buckles to pull the heavy boning of the
built-in corset into a perfect hourglass. Tooled inlay done in what
looked to be real silver crawled in a fiery motif along the edges where
black leather met white skin, terminating in a more complex design on
the cups that barely held and further accentuated her breasts.

Matching shoulder-length leather gloves and a sparkling silver collar
rounded out the ensemble, but it was Kouran herself that completed the
look. For the first time in nearly twenty-four hours, the tall woman was
not smiling. Head high and black-painted lips turned down in a frown of
infinite disdain, her crimson eyes seemed to blaze with all the color
and life that bad been drained from the rest of her body. Her normally
rebellious hair had even been tamed for the occasion. Partially braided,
it was pulled into a bun and held up by a set of ornamented silver pins.

This drew even more attention to the pointy ears that swept back from
the sides of her head, black furred and tipped by silver tufts. Several
long, matching fox tails emerged from the back cut of the dress, and
both looked like they'd been crafted with an impeccable eye for realism,
right down to the way they moved as though they were alive.

For instance, at the moment the animistic accessories seemed to betray
the hunger and expectation of a predator on the hunt. As the pale woman
glided across the floor the tails swished and swayed with her hips,
twitching in time to the click of what had to be a truly formidable set
of heels beneath her skirt. Even eerier, the ears perked up and swiveled
around as she scanned the room slowly, apparently looking for
something... or someone.

"... Yosei-chan, if rumors are started, I don't think it's going to be
about us." Like everyone else in the room, Setsuna stared transfixed at
the tall woman. Her words were so full of awe, they had no room for
insincerity.

"Sou desu yo." Saffron didn't seem to quite know what to make of
Kouran's appearance. Her face seemed animated by frantic, but hidden
thoughts. The redhead, understandably, did not have her attention on
Saffron's face, and missed the important part of the ice cream queen's
response.

"Kitsune. Kouran-chan does have an interesting sense of humor," Hotaru
quipped. "And a black fox, yet..."

Hikari may have opened her mouth, but any sound that could have come out
seemed inadequate except for maybe 'can I borrow that some time?'. But
now was certainly not the time for THAT question.

The two Sentai-serving Kurokos, clinging to the ceiling where they had
been frantically shutting down the sprinklers, peeked upside-down
through the doorway into the dry room. They whispered frantically to
each other. "That's her! Phone it in! I'll keep watch here."

"You'll keep watch? You mean you'll saddle me with running herd on
Tweedledee and Tweedledumb. YOU call it in, I'LL watch miss
fancy-pumps."

And Shiro...

In the third rank of gawkers was Shiro, a horribly, horribly tortured
man. Left and right sides of his brain were waging a violent war. Eyes
and the assets of the more primitive emotions that dominated his simple
psyche rebelled against the absolute knowledge that the woman was a
terminal BITCH in his books.

His libido didn't seem inclined to agree. He tried to remind it that the
said same woman HAD knocked him out on one occasion. Libido was willing
to chalk that up to a misunderstanding. He pleaded that with a woman of
her stature he would probably only see eye-to-chest with her- not that
that was such a bad thing. However, the fact that she could, and
probably WOULD snap him in half for trying pulled a tight rein on
actions beyond staring... and maybe taking a picture or two for the
Hermes.

It was for the Hermes. Of course...

...the Hermes.

If he kept telling himself that he could move on with life.

"Great Goddess!" The leather-clad man threw himself to his knees and
planted his forehead on the ground; not daring to look at even the feet
of Kouran. Almost as part of a collective, Setsuna and the others'
attention turned to the new speaker.

"I had barely held onto hope that you might grace me with even a moment
of your time. Yet not only do you appear, but you have graciously
accepted my unworthy gift! Your radiant glory is more than my feeble
frame can bear; I am not worthy to look upon your eternal beauty. I will
cherish merely being in the presence of one so perfect for as long as I
will live!

"And yet... and yet my weak ungrateful heart betrays me, and dares feel
dissatisfied with this short moment. I can not but ask... may I remain
in your presence? I would serve you in whatever small way my inferior
self might, though the effort be my undoing, bring ease and comfort to
you." And, like spectators at a tennis game, the crowd's attention
turned back to Kouran.

And Shiro...

*It must be a cold, cause I'm definitely gonna be sick to my guts.*

*****

*I must make a note to start breaking more of her toys, at least until I
learn how to strangle her with my mind...*

Though Kouran had never lost sight of how bizarre and aggravating some
of her 'sisters' little 'quirks' were, it bore repeating; she had pair
of freaks living in her head. And now they seemed to be attracting other
freaks. But while the tragic, poetry-spouting 'artists' that had been
following her around were rather annoying, and those obsessive girls
from the ikebana club were certainly a bit creepy, they had _nothing_ on
this guy.

Sadly, more and more often it seemed to fall on _her_ shoulders to deal
with these poor, twisted bastards, and on this occasion she was almost
certain that it was deliberate. *You've got some @$^%ed up ways of
getting your kicks, bitch...* Still, after a moment of disgusted
consideration, it occurred to the pale woman that there might yet be a
semi-satisfying way to straighten out this particular reject.

Ears laid back and lips curled cruelly, as if in preparation to strike,
Kouran fixed the leather-clad man with a glare sharp enough to draw
blood. "Stand Up," she commanded, her manner and tone projecting such
absolute authority that some of the spectators suddenly found themselves
standing at attention.

"As you say, my Queen." The strap-bound man stood, but kept his eyes on
the floor.

When the leather-clad man rose, Kouran removed one hand from her hip. As
it hung at her side, poised as though she might bring it up to slap him,
some people nearby thought they could see something glittering and
almost half-there unravel from around her wrist. On the word 'Queen',
however, two bright clad figures slammed through the crowd milling by
the doorway, sending rubbernecks hither and yon.

Hikari was caught in the midsection by a tripping costumer; falling
almost gracefully backwards, the tomb robber seemed to float in the air
for a moment while her feet rose to almost shoulder level and her
ponytail climbed to point to the sky. The crystal moment shattered and
Hikari landed on a convenient couch with a whoosh of exhaled breath and
an ass in her lap. Sort of. The latter half of a donkey costume waved
it's tail around her nose.

The disturbance turned out to be the two Temple Rangers, who had
recovered from their earlier miscalculation. Ranger Blue pointed his
finger at Kouran accusingly. "We've found you, Dark Queen of Evil, and
your little Minion, too!"

*'Dark Queen of Evil'?* Turning to peer askance at the two spandex
wearing buffoons, Kouran quirked an incredulous eyebrow and wondered who
wrote their dialogue. Though campy enough, it seemed to lack the heavy
hand of self-aggrandizing imagination that her good 'friend' the Dragon
King favored; those black-clad women on the ceiling seemed familiar
enough, though.

The kurokos dutifully if absentmindedly threw handfuls of wholly benign
glitter over the pair while continuing to whisper. "Crap! We're supposed
to keep them as far away from her as humanly possible! If anything
happens to them, we're so toast!"

"Stop panicking and think of a plan! We have to lure them away somehow,
or at least make sure they don't try anything stupid. Or at least not
anything stupid that would make her pound them. Hmmm...."

"That's a very evil 'Hmmm'."

"Good. I have a very evil plan."

Kouran, on the other hand, was for the moment willing to ignore the two
idiots as not worth her time; the 'Dark Queen' accusation didn't bother
her, and she still had to do something about her 'evil minion.' Spying
the door to a handy TV room off to the side, she began crossing the
floor. Glancing back to her blind date for the evening, she gestured
absently for him to follow...

<ka-click>

... and stopped abruptly in her tracks. Like a searchlight, the large
vulpine ear on the right side of her head lifted and turned to face the
source of the sound, nearly the full length of the room away. The rest
of her upper body twisted around shortly afterward, so that she could
look at the voyeuristic web-slinger with a single blood-red eye.

Kouran didn't utter a word as the hand that she'd raised earlier
flickered out in a whip-crack gesture and a thin, shining line suddenly
connected her fingers to the chunk of plastic, metal, and glass in
Shiro's hands. It didn't remain there for long, however, as she
continued the motion and yanked backward.

The strap around his neck pulled the reporter off of his feet as the
camera leapt from his grasp to arc over the room before the tall woman
reached up and plucked it from the air. Looking down at the device,
Kouran appeared to be instantly absorbed in puzzling over where the
film-release catch was.

The satchel of used and unused film he had on his shoulder slid under
the couch Shiro was standing behind as he crashed onto the arm. It only
took a second or two for him figure out what had just happened.

This wasn't the super-ultra deluxe Kwanon that had managed to make its
way into her possession. This was more important. This was his Nikkon.
The camera he used everyday. The one that'd been a part of his art for
over 5 years. His camera. And Kouran was manhandling it and asking
nicely wasn't likely to get it back.

In two steps he was perched between the back and armrest of the couch,
cracking his right arm forward like a whip. 6 feet of ultra-thin bungee
cord stretched to 12, then to 18. He knew 24 was the tension limit, but
it might be just long enough. The soft weight at the end of the rubber
cord wrapped around Kouran's left palm, missing the camera, but
encircling the camera strap and her glove.

"Hey FOXY!" he pulled back HARD, stepping off the couch and yanking with
both hands. The camera - strap, glove, nails and all - flew back over
the parabolic arc to his hands. "Paws off!"

Staring down at her empty palm, Kouran looked up to fix the soon to be
_very_ unfortunate young man across the room with a baleful glare. She
dropped the remaining gloved hand to her side and again, a faint,
glittering thread shook down from it.

It remained there only a moment before leaping it the air again,
crackling as it rippled across the floor like a striking viper. Unlike
the bungee cord Shiro was using, there was nothing 'soft' or 'stretchy'
about the cuttingly fine industrial wire that snaked around his
forearms, trailing behind a needle-like dart.

Hiking the skirt up to her knees with her free hand, the pale woman
leaned to the side and _heaved_, plucking the lighter boy up off of the
ground like a fish on the end of a line. Though his flight was blessedly
short, the last thing he saw was an elbow rushing toward his face as he
landed, and everything went dark.

Reaching down, Kouran retrieved her glove and the camera. With a
disdainful snort, she removed the film before setting the young man's
'treasure' back on his chest, safe and sound. Making the small black
cartridge disappear... somewhere... she pulled on her other glove and
turned to continue on her way.

Shiro, on the other hand, was grounded, and all in all otherwise silent.
He might not have blacked out, but he'd certainly received an intro
lesson in astronomy. As much as he felt the weight of his camera on his
chest, common sense (amid the church bells ringing in his ears) told him
that there wouldn't be any film in it. Apparently, Kouran had decided
again that Shiro wasn't worth finishing off. At the moment that suited
him fine. But he wasn't gonna take it lying down.

Well, maybe for a minute anyway. Getting up right now would show the
world he was tough and determined. But it would also show them (and
Kouran) that he had no sense of balance with which to preserve his
autonomic functions AGAINST Kouran. It was time to take quick stock of
the situation, giving her plenty of time to make an exit and keep her
out of earshot.

The roll she'd got was the only one with Kouran pictures on it - a few
other shots, but nothing that couldn't be salvaged off another roll.
There was the pride, and the principal of it all - but other principals
(like gravity and self preservation) had to be considered. She was
walking away with someone else's property. His. He had legit claim on
it - morally and legally. However SHE had it physically.

It was a bitter pill to swallow, but he knew he couldn't take her in a
fight. At range, he had the advantage of ... what? Being able to take
great 8x10 glossies of her trying to kick his ass? But up close he
could.... suffer UNIMAGINABLE amounts of physical damage.... er... no
good. This was a girl who had hauled 175lbs of him through the air over
20 feet and into her elbow.

He couldn't take her one on one.

No. One on one was NOT an option.

He opened his eyes to the crowd around him, pulling faces and colors
slowly into focus. He wondered why his forehead felt damp but passed it
off as secondary. He looked to the sentais, flashing his eyes up and
left to the ninjas, but not tilting his head in their direction. They
were just regular partygoers - off course.

"Urgh... ow! Urk that stung..." he groaned, floundering a bit for the
camera, but not getting off the floor. "... m'film. Did she take film
for the Herme's paper?..." He didn't stand- he wanted to see where other
people were standing instead.

The Temple Rangers rushed to his side. "A hero has fallen! Curse you
Queen of Darkness! We'll beat you!"

Kouran gave them a look.

The green sentai picked 'Spiderman' up, and slung the photographer's arm
over his shoulders. "Butfirstwe'lltakehimtosafety. Temple Blue, cover
our escape!"

*Oh well.*

The named hero drew a very sci-fi looking pistol with a great deal of
unnecessary motion. "You've beaten us this time, but we are only two!
United like the student body, we are invincible! Temple Ranger!" He
pointed the gun at the ground near Kouran, and pulled the trigger. A
tinny electronic zap came from the device, and the kurokos threw four or
five tiny smokeless spark bombs at the 'target area'. Under 'cover' of
the flashes, the two sentai carrying Shiro rushed out the door.

The Kurokos followed quickly after. "So where's the evil plan?"

"Saving it for later."

*****

*'Evil plan?'* Kouran's ears perked up when she overheard this last
snippet of banter as the kurokos left the room. *Dammit, those half-wit
ninja are up to something again...* Pausing with her hand on the door to
the TV room, she pondered what she could do about it. She still had the
gimp to deal with, after all.

Meanwhile, a certain leather-clad suitor of Kouran's was staring at her
wide-eyed and slack jawed. "What... what incredible power. You are more
than a Queen, you're a goddess of war; more incredible than I could have
imagined. The way you just threw a grown man around like a toy... I
never dreamed such a thing were possible!" His voice dropped to a
sub-audible whisper. "I'm so jealous!"

Understandably misinterpreting who the young man meant when he said
'jealous,' partially since it wasn't meant to be heard, the pale woman
cast him a put-upon glare. "Look, I don't know who you are, and at the
moment I doubt there's much you could do to make me care. But if you
want to make yourself useful, go follow them." She pointed at the backs
of the retreating sentai and kurokos. "And try to be a bit more
@()&*$^ing discreet about it..."

Confident that matter was settled, Kouran took a moment to glance over
at the drama in progress on the other side of the tight-packed crowd of
gawkers. There'd been an awful lot of screaming coming from that
direction. Rubbing her temples, she decided that if it went on for much
longer, she was going to be having another friendly 'discussion' with
whomever was responsible.

But now that she'd dealt with the one _specific_ moron that she was
required to by her oh-so-thoughtful 'sister,' as well as the various
others that inevitably decided to get in her way, at least she could
probably get out of this blasted straight-jacket. Seeing that much of
the attention had been diverted from her to the scene Hikari was making,
the pale woman slipped into the TV room and shut the door behind her,
locking it with a soft 'click.'

"But I..." The gimp looked between the sentai and the door as she
departed, obviously struggling. "Alright. If it will be useful, I will
do it." And with a bit of effort on his part, he was just another
reveler in an edgy costume, heading out the door to another party.

And, maybe 7-8 feet to the side of that conversation, another commotion
was in the throes of confusion...

****

(A few minutes earlier...)

Pinned to a couch a short distance away from the spectacle, Hikari
squirmed uncomfortably. "This is just like Godfather Part 1, but on a
lower budget. Tasukete kudasai!" she said as she tried to level the
donkeys bottom. "Can someone get the ass off of me?!"

Hikari's voice finally managed to snap Setsuna out of the trance she'd
been put in. Hastily, and glancing back several times at the latest turn
of events, she went to her friend's aid. She managed to pull the poor
projectile partially off of the even more kawaisou landing mat.

*What was that?!* Jerking up as something flew overhead, in her surprise
at the sudden activity, Setsuna accidentally let go of the donkey, who
<whomped> down on Hikari again. "Aah! Gomen, Hikari-chan!"

Epiphany was chuckling helplessly by this point. She managed to deposit
her tray of snacks on a side table without too much spillage though, and
joined Setsuna in rescuing Hikari from her inadvertently close
companion. "Everyone seems to be getting very much into character," she
said cheerfully.

The ass, for its part, was doing very little to extricate itself from
the situation. As Epiphany and Setsuna struggled to unburden Hikari of
the beast of burden, they soon discovered why it hadn't been moving, as
what appeared to be a large kidney plopped down onto the tomb raider's
thigh. Taking the briefest moment to balance itself there, it proceeded
to roll languidly down her leg and come to a rest by her foot.

The coils of warm, glistening, and oddly dry entrails that were now
trapped under Hikari's body, on the other hand, were less yielding. As
more of them spilled out of the front of the donkey costume--confusing
matters and causing more than one onlooker to gag--it became apparent
that the animal had no front to hold itself together with. It was slowly
coming apart.

Hikari was, for a change, speechless. She was frozen in horror.

The legs began to kick. The ass began to convulse.

After a few seconds of frantic motion, it ceased to convulse.

The legs ceased to kick.

Somewhere in the heart of the ass's ass, a weak, muffled voice offered
this by way of explanation:

"Help..."

Setsuna reeled back, her eyes going wide. She held Epiphany's arm with
both hands in a death grip. "E-Epiphany-chan..." It was difficult to
keep the sharp notes of terror from her voice, especially with her heart
in its talons like that. "Please tell me that's just a very very well
made and detailed costume!"

Epiphany examined it clinically, prodding it with her water gun. That
lasted about a minute before she looked up, her face pale. "I don't
know, but it's _really_ gross."

Edging around to one side she prodded at the ass with one booted and
foot and then gave it a firm push. "Get off Hikari, stupid thing."

Hikari was quavering under the weight/sight of the half-animal. Her eyes
were liquid with terror. But, on a possibly positive note, she was at
least minorly vocal. A keening little, "ee..eee...eeee...." was starting
to come through her lips. Inexorably building in force. Right now it was
a semi muffled whisper, but it was working its way upward.

"Banzai!" Saffron, who'd disappeared amid the confusion, re-entered the
scene with a flying vault over the couch Hikari was pinned to.
'Koomba's' magic staff was strapped to her back, and she brandished a
shining knife in her free hand. "Teeeee!" The knife whipped down towards
the back of the back of the ass.

And Saffron buttered the zipper thoroughly.

"Sugoi, Saffron-chan," Hotaru cheered, making her own reappearance
alongside Maya just after the sentai cosplayers departed. It appeared
she'd gone in search of those cute drinks Setsuna had mentioned, for
now, with not a word of explanation beyond, "Here," she thrust one into
Maya's hand and strolled closer to the fragmenting costume.

Saffron beamed at Hotaru. "I've gotten trapped in a costume because of a
stuck zipper before, myself. It's sooo embarrassing. But a bit of butter
always seems to do the trick."

"Hmm," Maya murmured after a moment. She shrugged, offering Hikari her
free hand. "Oh well. This's turning out to be quite a party."

Between Saffron's final finishing move and Epiphany's big boot, the ass
had fallen a bit off to the side of Hikari's actual person. Setsuna
reluctantly released her death grip on Epiphany and leaned down to help
her friend up, her expression one of morbid anticipation. "Are you
alright, Hikari-chan?" She asked, reaching down to pull up her friend's
arm.

She ended up pulling up an arm full of intestines instead- dry, but
glimmering. With a sick <spluttering> sound, the realistic tubes pulled
apart in her hands. ".... AAAAAH!!" Panicking, she tossed the innards
onto into the air. They landed with more <plop spluttering> sounds on
Maya.

Maya screamed a high pitched girly scream before she realized it was
fake. Holding her chest, she looked over to Hikari, giving her a dull
glare. "Thanks.." She said flatly, before smiling evilly and throwing
the innards back at the other girl. "Let me just show you how much!"

Though nauseated, Hikari managed to cast a baleful glare at Maya. *Oh,
you'll pay for THAT one my pretty. And your little dog too... if you
have one. Or a hamster. I'll get your hamster. And if you DON'T have a
hamster, I BUY you one and THEN wreak terrible vengeance upon you.*

An innard snaked across her shoulder.

*UNGH*

And another grabbed her by the ankle and began to pull.

A mass of viscera had begun to slowly, almost painfully, emerge from the
gaping zippered wound in the ass. With one entrail, and then two,
grasping Hikari's ankles, it pulled itself forward until it was finally
free of its carcass, at which point it released its grip and lay heaving
at the horrified girl's feet.

"Gah!" Maya gasped as she backed further away from the other girl. What
the hell was going on, anyway?!

Hikari looked as blue as her tight top. She didn't so much as stand as
she kind of flopped on Hotaru. "I think I'm gonna be sick." she said
desperately.

"Careful; you'll ruin your image. Here, have something to settle your
nerves." The other cute drink was pressed into Hikari's hand.

Then Hotaru picked up something that might have been a kidney, to take a
closer look. "Hmm. Kinda reminds me of our last bio lab. I didn't really
want to think about schoolwork tonight..." The organ plopped back down
onto the costume. "Have to admire the creativity, though."

Maya only looked at Hotaru lamely. "Some creativity," she said in an
unamused  tone, looking down at the formed organ. "Kinda gross too."
Maya blinked, suddenly noticing the drink in her hand. Lifting it up,
she grinned, thinking about how cute it was before taking a sip. "A-Ah!
its alcohol!" She said, making a face and giggling as the small bubbles
tickled her nose. "Arigato, Hotaru-san!" She didn't really condone
drinking... But she didn't want to dull the party for her new found
friends. It was all okay if she just didn't get drunk... Right?

Now, completely abandoned by her friends amiably chatting friends,
surrounded by onlookers and being mounted by viscera, Hikari could only
proceed on one path. She was never good at charades. But her impression
of a jackhammer was pretty good. People would probably pity the innards
playing the part of the pavement

Saffron wrapped her arms around Hikari, trying unsuccessfully to pull
her friend away from the crawling figure.
"Hedidn'tdoitonpurposehedidn'tdoitonpurposeHikaripleasestoppleasestooppl
ease."

The innards, for their part, did a passable impression of inner organs
being assaulted by industrial machinery. The only thing marring the
illusion was the body desperately dragging its way out of them, inching
out as best it could between blows until it was finally free of the
coils, and consequently Hikari's heels.

It lay there panting, and it was by no means a large body. Face down and
dressed in a form-obscuring black jumper, the only distinguishing
feature it offered was a long black braid of hair nearly as long as the
body it was attached to. Black-gloved hands spasmodically clenching and
unclenching, it simply lay prone for a few seconds until its breathing
had steadied.

"Well shit." it offered in a cracked and pained voice. "File that one
under 'Seemed like a good idea at the time.'"

To Be Continued...

Again, all game posts can be found at:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Anime_Freeform_RPG
Thanks for reading, from everyone at the White Temple Anime Freeform
RPG!




... Still with us? Cool! Now then, for those of you who are still
interested
after reading an example of what we do, or who just skipped directly to
the end (shame on you!), we now have a sample character profile that
might be submitted for entrance into the game. If we like your idea we
may ask you to provide a writing sample or other material, to show how
brilliantly you can write your character interacting with his or her
environment. Again, PRIVATE REPLIES ONLY, if you want to submit
a character! The e-mail again is eimii@metacrawler.com; don't touch
that 'reply all' button ^_^;!




[Example Character Profile: Vital Statistics may be presented in simple
bullet format, but most detailed aspects of character description (hair,
eyes, appearance, voice, clothing, program, activities, reputation,
rumors, other, etc.) should be included in the prose description.]

Name: Sir Randolph Notappearinginthispicture
Age: 20
Birth date: January 29 (Aquarius)
Blood Type: A
Height: 6'
Weight: 175lbs

Sir Randolph Notappearinginthispicture, viscount of Dullshire and heir
to the county of Notappearinginthispicture, is a headstrong snobby young
British nobleman of the classic type. Immaculately groomed brown hair
tops a smiling face with keen sparkling eyes. Casual but perfectly
tailored clothes cover a body still copper-tanned from yachting the
Caribbean. His 6' body is always held with crisp posture, even when he's
relaxing. Slouching is... untidy.

Though both of his parents are alive, Randolph (never Randy) was raised
by nannies and tutors in the lavish ancestral estate of his family. He
has two younger brothers, William and Donald with whom he shares both a
camaraderie and a history of mischief.

Born of privilege, and raised in privilege, Randolph has lived insulated
from anything resembling the 'real world'. From private tutoring at
home, he graduated to the best schools in England, and shared classes
with other boys raised in much the same way. Randolph knows there are
two sorts of people in the world: The elite, and those that do the work.
The non-elite are good people, and to be respected for their hard work
and skill; just not the sort of people one invites to a luncheon. Men
are to be strong and dashing, women are to be graceful and wise, and the
two complement each other fabulously. Money should not be spent
foolishly: there is no point buying a yacht if one has no interest in
sailing; simply having things for the sake of having them is nonsense.
You buy what you need to achieve your goals, and you buy the highest
quality. Anything else is a waste.

In the land of the elite, status is the only currency worth counting,
and Randolph holds achievement as the only source of status. So he has
developed fine skills at collecting and keeping it. While only
moderately handsome, Randolph is a consummate athlete, playing Polo,
tennis, racquetball and cricket at a near professional level, as well as
racing his yacht competitively. He also has a ready smile that makes him
friends easily.

This quest for status has brought him to White Temple, one of the most
highly rated schools in the world. Simply graduating from this academy
carries with it a fame and notoriety recognized in high circles
worldwide. Randolph enrolled in a classical literature program, and
sought to complement his athleticism with a reputation as a lettered
scholar.

Yet, since arriving at the school, Randolph has had two strong
revelations. First, when he discovered that some students had been
accepted at White Temple for merit, rather than money or influence, he
realized that sometimes achievement is the goal itself, rather than a
means of gaining status. Second, he discovered the classic film works of
Sir Sean Connery, Sir Alec Guiness, Sir Ian McKellan, Sir Richard
Harris, Sir Micheal Caine and Sir Laurence Olivier.

Such men were these, who had such presence, such charisma! Rudolph
decided he had to join their august company. To that end, two months
into the first semester, he changed his major from Literature to Drama
and Theater arts, with a minor in Film. He has also joined both the film
appreciation and filmmaking clubs.

Up until now, his Literature course has kept him away from the cast.
With his change in focus, he is more likely to interact with the artists
and media types. He may also specifically seek out students who entered
White Temple on merit scholarships for insight on how 'the other half
lives' (i.e. people not born into wealth). A friendly athletic rivalry
with Yutaro could arise. Discussions of the differences between moving
and still picture composition could introduce him to Shiro or Shion.
Rumors of Kouran's 'playing three characters in life' could catch his
ear.





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