Art class is alright. After spending a couple months on the fundamentals of putting paint to canvas, most of the student body have at least a basic understanding of putting a decent looking image on the blank sheet. I mostly appreciate that paint brushes are strong enough for me to hold without breaking them every time I try using it with any degree of interest. Mrs. Winchester even complimented my 'form' on a couple occasions, saying that the rough and blunt strokes create a style that's unique to me. Even if I somehow end up using more paint than anyone else in the class. Though I question the sincerity of this praise considering she never really seems to have anything negative to say about anyone else's drawing. Since finishing the first few months of basics, we've started on the school project Mrs. Winchester boasted about early on in the school year. Painting what's most important to us... *choice #I'm kind of getting into it *set firearms -1 *set stealth -1 I don't get many opportunities to express myself in ways that wouldn't warrant police involvement for anyone without the shadow of the CIA protecting them. And if the segment on the historical artists was anything to go by, it seems like having some kind of damage is a requirement for becoming one of the greats. Not that I'm particularly interested in becoming a famous artist. From what we read, most of them end up dying alone, poor, ostracized by their peers, and more than likely by their own hand. Not a particularly healthy career path. But as a hobby, there are worse things. After a quick brief from Mrs. Winchester, we're left to our own devices. I see no point in wasting time and dig through my book bag, retrieving my favorite pen. One with a fine point. No painting today. Just sketching. Getting the image right so that we know what we're doing prior to applying paint. Get the image right... The most important thing... *choice *selectable_if (((tactics >85) and (firearms >85)) and (combat >85)) #My last memory of my mother... *set painting "Alone" [i]Desperately hungry. [i]Exhausted. Hurt. Everything hurt. [i]So long, so hungry. [i]A command to wait. Don't move. She'll be right back. [i]Waiting. Cold, alone, the first time we'd ever been separate. [i]A shot, somewhere in the dark. [i]She comes back, just as promised. Bleeding, cold, pale. With bloodstained bread in her hands. [i]"Please...live..." [i]Then I'm alone again... [i]Alone... "Alone." "Oh," Mrs. Winchester looks at my rough sketch with a pitiful gaze as I tell her what I'd decided to name it. "...I think this will be lovely, ${firstname}. Thank you." *goto ish *selectable_if (((tactics >85) and (firearms >85)) and (combat >85)) #The most influential person... *set painting "Him" [i]The others called him Fiskal. But he was always just 'that officer' to me. [i]I'd seen him a few times. In the back, occasionally walking around. Never thought much of him, until the day he decided to 'take me under his wing.' [i]Life got a lot more complicated after that. I'd never been important before. Another face in a crowd. Another grunt, to do and die. [i]He made me different from all the others. Stronger, faster, smarter. Better. And he made sure they knew it. Made sure they hated me. [i]Made sure that every day after that would be a struggle. [i]Made sure I'd be grateful for every day that I was alive. [i]But more than that, he wanted to make sure I belonged to him. Only him. [i]Only him... "Him." "Oh?" Mrs. Winchester looks at my rough sketch with a curious gaze as I tell her what I'd decided to name it. "This man is...important to you?" "...I suppose so, in a way." Important enough to hate. "I see." She smiles, "Then it will be fine. Thank you, ${firstname}." *goto ish *selectable_if (((tactics >85) and (firearms >85)) and (combat >85)) #My one friend... *set painting "Regret" [i]He had his own selfish motives for getting close. [i]But then, so did I. That selfish connection probably enhanced our friendship more than anything else. [i]Out of everyone, he was the only one that I could really turn my back on. [i]We had cooperation. Trust. In that place, that meant something. [i]Though I suppose, that trust only went so far. In the end, he ended up paying for trusting me... [i]Our last gifts to each other. He got betrayal. I got regret. [i]Regret... "Regret." "Oh?" Mrs. Winchester looks at my rough sketch with a curious gaze as I tell her what I'd decided to name it. "This boy is...important to you?" "...I suppose so, yes." "I see." She smiles, "Then it will be fine. Thank you, ${firstname}." *goto ish #Nothing from the past. Something more recent... *set combat -1 *set firearms -1 *set explosives -1 *set tactics -1 *set stealth -2 *set reflex -1 There's not much in my past that I have much care to remember. I'm fine with forgetting everything that's ever happened. Everything I've left behind. Everything I care about is right here. The thing I care most about... *choice *selectable_if (((tactics <80) and (firearms <80)) and (combat <80)) #A suburban house, with a picket fence and a green yard *set painting "Home" A nice, clean house. With a green yard, a white picket fence, and blue skies almost every day. It's cozy in the summer, beautiful in the fall, and welcoming in the winter. Whatever is outside, I can go in and find food waiting for me. Every now and then Daniel will cook dinner, usually macaroni or bacon and eggs, something simple like that. A warm shower after a workout. Warm when it's cold outside, cool when it's hot outside. A room to myself. With a soft bed. A place to call my own. To call my home. My home. "Home." "Oh?" Mrs. Winchester looks at my rough sketch with a smile as I tell her what I'd decided to name it. "That's a lovely name, ${firstname}. Thank you." *goto ish *if (daddan > hatedan) and (daddan > frienddan) *selectable_if (((tactics <80) and (firearms <80)) and (combat <80)) #A father *set painting "Dad" *set daddan +5 I barely knew my mother. And whoever my biological father is or was, I'll probably never know. Probably better off for it. So in a way, Daniel really is the first real father I've ever had. Even if only legally. Though, it doesn't matter much that he's my adopted father on some sheet of paper in an office. It's those little things he does. Cooking bacon and eggs in the morning, or dinner in the evening. Always something simple, like macaroni or waffles, cause he'd never learned how to properly cook before I came into the picture. The way he makes sure the blinds are closed, because he knows I hate open windows. Or how he once carried me to my bed when I had accidentally fallen asleep watching TV. Or how he always lets me have the shower first after a workout. Or when he accepts being half an hour late to work, so that I don't have to wait in the cold... "Dad." "Oh?" Mrs. Winchester looks at my rough sketch with a smile as I tell her what I'd decided to name it. "That's a lovely name, ${firstname}. Thank you." *goto ish *if (frienddan > hatedan) and (frienddan > daddan) *selectable_if ((((tactics <80) and (firearms <80))) and (combat <80)) #A guardian *set frienddan +5 *set painting "Caring" I've been able to count the number of people who actually cared about me on one hand. Even the odd helpful person usually only did so out of some form of self interest, or because it wasn't any bother to them. But those little things a person can do for another. Holding a door, letting them shower first, or accepting being half an hour late to work so that I wouldn't have to wait in the cold. All the things Daniel does, when he doesn't have to. That's how I know what caring looks like. "Caring." "Oh?" Mrs. Winchester looks at my rough sketch with a smile as I tell her what I'd decided to name it. "That's a lovely name, ${firstname}. Thank you." *goto ish *selectable_if (((tactics <80) and (firearms <80)) and (combat <80)) #A normal school, for a normal future *set painting "Hope" A normal school. Sure, it has it's quirks, but so do I. Seems like a perfect match in that respect. All I know is that everyone before coming here assumed they knew my future from the beginning. But this place is the only one that seems willing to give me options. I actually have a future for once. One that's decidedly unknown. A place that's leaving it up to me. A place that's willing to hope. "Hope." "Oh?" Mrs. Winchester looks at my rough sketch with a smile as I tell her what I'd decided to name it. "That's a lovely name, ${firstname}. Thank you." *goto ish #...What [i]do[/i] I care about? *set painting "Care?" Once I ask the question, I can't get it out of my head. What do I care about? Is there anything here that I really consider precious to me? Everything here is definitely better than where I came from. I know that. I enjoy it here. But in terms of something that stands out, something that's precious and mine... "I do not know what to paint." "No idea at all?" Mrs. Winchester asks as I tell her the reason I couldn't submit a rough sketch at the end of class like most of the other students. "Well, that's alright, there's still some time. But I would like a sketch by the end of the week. Do you need help finding something?" "I do not know." "It doesn't have to be complicated," She offers a supportive smile. Just go through your day, and try to think of what's the most important thing in your life. What's something you care about?" [i]There's nothing I care about.[/i] Is the first thought, though I keep it to myself. Instead, *goto ish #I'll probably just make something up *set painting "Whatever" It's just a class. I highly doubt the school system is actually interested in knowing about what's important to me, or even my actual artistic ability, as long as I can reach the minimum requirement. So I can afford to conserve energy for other tasks and just draw the first thing that comes to mind. "Here you go," I say to Mrs. Winchester as I hand in a rough sketch of my house. "I see," She smiles as she looks it over. "And what's this one called?" I shrug. "House." "That's a lovely name, ${firstname}. Thank you." *goto ish #It's 10% of the final grade. I can afford to neglect it *set painting "Fuck It" It's just a class. The minimum to pass the class is a 60% total. While anything lower than a 70% is typically frowned upon, it is still valid for achieving a passing grade of the class and of the year. And in this particular class, 50% is based on attendance alone, so just showing up is doing most of the work for me. So this 10% assignment isn't the most important thing in the world for me. Near the end of class, most other students walk over to the teacher's desk to submit their rough sketches. Some others never do, either because they're not finished or haven't started. *if (vi_friend =true) "You aren't submitting something?" And I'm distracted from my inner thoughts by a soft voice from beside me that could only be Vi. *choice *if (combat <85) and (firearms <85) #Why, are you? *set tactics -1 *set firearms -1 "Are you?" "Um," she bites her lip and looks at her canvas that's tilted out of my view. "No. I don't think I will..." *label vibevi *choice *if (tactics <85) #If she has something she wants to show, she should. *set vikindness +1 Just because I do something doesn't automatically mean I expect her to follow my lead. Maybe this could be an opportunity to foster a little bit of independence in the little stray. "If you want to submit a painting, don't hold back on my account. Do what you want." She looks shyly between her painting and me. "You...think it's good?" "I have not even seen it," I point out. "That is irrelevant. Do you think it is good?" Vi seems to shrink into herself, and rub her eye a little. "I like it." She whispers. "I...I'm going to turn it in...i-if that's alright with you!" I shrug. "Whatever feels right." She smiles, picks up her picture, and starts walking toward the desk. *choice #I try to get a glimpse of what the picture is It's a bit hard to get a good look from the angle provided as she walks straight toward the teacher's desk, but I'm pretty sure I can make out the vague image of a woman. Older, adult, but with some of Vi's features. She looks sad. *goto bish #If she wants me to know, she'll show me *set tactics -1 *set firearms -1 *set reflex -1 Everyone has things they prefer to keep to themselves. I should know that. And I should respect it in others. At least in cases like this, when I'm reasonably certain I have little to fear from Vi. *goto bish #I don't care *set reflex -1 What Vi does and doesn't care about is little care of my own. In the end, it's just a drawing. *goto bish #Suspicious. What doesn't she want me to see? She flinches when I look at her. "Why? What did you draw?" "I-It's not important," she mutters, shrinking away and not making eye contact. *choice #Too far. Backtrack *set reflex -1 *set tactics -1 "Alright," I tell her. Looking away. "If that is what you want." Pretty sure I hear her breath a sigh of relief. Though the conversation ends there. *goto bish #I want to know what she drew "I am curious." I tell her as bluntly and straight-forward as I can. "Show me what you drew." "I..." She bites her lip, looking between me and her picture, before sighing in defeat. "Here..." She mutters as she finally turns it in my direction. ...It's not a very good drawing. If her painting is as bad as her sketching, I predict a low score. But at least I'm able to make out the content of the sketch. It appears to be an older woman, mid-30s or so. Facial structure and hair color is similar to Vi's. She looks quite sad, though nothing out of the ordinary, aside from the lack of eyes. "Is the lack of eyes true to life, or are you just not finished drawing?" "Oh, uhm...I don't know, that's just what came to mind." She mutters, "It's supposed to be my mom..." *choice #Why would she say that wasn't important? *set firearms -1 "Vi, that sounds like it is important to you. Why would you say that it is not?" She gives a meek shrug, "I don't know...I didn't think you'd be interested..." *choice #We're friends. Of course I'm interested *set vikindness +1 "Vi, we are friends. I am interested." She looks down. "Oh, right. I forgot." "That we are friends, or that friends would be interested?" "…Yes." *goto bish #I'm not. Just curious "I am just a bit curious, that's all." "Right. That makes sense." She nods along with the statement, as if I solved a math problem for her. *goto bish #Does she want to talk about it? *set combat -1 *set firearms -1 *set tactics -1 *set vikindness +1 "Would you like to talk about it?" "Is…it a choice?" "That is why I asked." She smiles. "Then I would not." "…Fair enough." *goto bish #I'll lie and say it looks nice *set combat -1 What is that thing Mrs. Winchester would say whenever she saw a student work hard to make a bad painting? "I see. You put a lot of yourself into this, very passionate." "Uhm…thanks, but I think you should come up with your own lies." "I see." "It was a good try, though!" Who is trying to compliment who, here? *goto bish #Degrade her effort *set viabuse +1 "I would advise against showing it to her. She'd probably take it as an insult." Vi winces and looks down. "Y-you think so?" "You weren't going to turn that in, were you? Looking like that?" "N-no," she mutters. "No…it's stupid." *goto bish #Well, that's her business. "If you say so," you shrug. Mind already wandering to the subject of your next class as you wait for the bell to ring. *goto bish #I see no reason to "It is only 10% of the final grade, and attendance alone accounts for 50%. 60% is required to advance." I explain my reasoning to her. "Considering that, can probably afford to neglect this particular assignment. It sounds like more trouble than it is worth." "Uh…yeah, you're probably right." She says after taking in the explanation. "Seems kind of pointless when you put it like that…" She says. Though I'm pretty sure I noticed her looking rather focused while doing her own sketch. And as I was speaking, she did not-so-inconspicuously tilt her canvas away from my view. *goto vibevi #Go away, Vi *label jerkass *set viabuse +2 "Can't talk with you right now, Vi. I don't have the energy." "…Oh." She mutters in a soft little squeak. "I'll just…be quiet then. Over here." "Do that." I say, and let her fade out of my thought while my mind starts turning toward my next class. *goto bish *if (vi_friend =false) As I'm sitting in my seat, pondering all this, it suddenly hits me that something seems to be missing right about now. This would ordinarily be the time of the class that Vi does something or other to get my attention. Yet here I am, reasoning through the math of how much I can afford to not care about this class without being held back, without anything to distract me. *choice #What's Vi doing right now? Out of curiosity, I look out across to the other side of the classroom where Vi typically sits and, to my surprise, I don't catch her staring back at me. *label paranoia Instead, she's intently focused on her drawing. Pencil moving across the canvas without every breaking eye contact with it. *choice #Is that something I should be concerned about? She's never wavered in her obsessive impulses before, why would she change now? Because of some school assignment? Unlikely. And the more I think about it, the more unlikely there could possibly be anything benign with whatever she is drawing right now. *choice #I should go see what she drew! *label alwaysdie I get up from my seat and move across the classroom. This attracts the curiosity of some, but not enough for anyone to try and stop me, and not enough for the disturbance to draw Vi's attention. She doesn't notice me until I'm looking over her shoulder, at which point she jumps with an audible squeak at my sudden appearance. "${firstname}, you came over?!" I don't answer her right away, instead taking a good look at the sketch penciled over her blank canvas. ...It's not a very good drawing. If her painting is as bad as her sketching, I predict a low score. But at least I'm able to make out the content of the sketch. It appears to be an older woman, mid-30s or so. Facial structure and hair color is similar to Vi's. She looks quite sad, though nothing out of the ordinary, aside from the lack of eyes. *choice #Nothing to see here. Walk away Nothing after all. Once that's confirmed, I walk back to my seat. Leaving Vi probably a bit confused, though the rest of the class doesn't seem to react to this. Might be used to it by now. *goto bish #Tell her it looks nice and walk away *set vikindness +1 I look between Vi, looking startled and flustered, and the drawing. "It looks nice." I tell her, before heading back to my seat. Not sure how she took it, didn't look behind to confirm. Hopefully well. *goto bish #Ask her about it "Who's this supposed to be?" It takes her a second to get over her flustered surprise in order to recognize the question being posed. "Oh, uh…it's supposed to be my mom." "Does your mom not have eyes? Or was that a stylistic choice?" "...I don't know, that's just what came to mind." She mutters, "I don't like her eyes very much. *choice #Does she want to talk about it? *set combat -1 *set firearms -1 *set tactics -1 *set vikindness +1 "Would you like to talk about it?" "Is…it a choice?" "That is why I asked." She smiles. "Then I would not." "…Fair enough." I nod, and head on back to my own seat. Curiosity sated. *goto bish #I'll lie and say it looks nice *set combat -1 What is that thing Mrs. Winchester would say whenever she saw a student work hard to make a bad painting? "I see. You put a lot of yourself into this, very passionate." "Uhm…thanks, but I think you should come up with your own lies." "I see." "It was a good try, though!" Who is trying to compliment who, here? "Thanks, I guess." I mutter, and head on back to my own seat. Curiosity sated. *goto bish #Degrade her effort *set viabuse +1 "I would advise against showing it to her. She'd probably take it as an insult." Vi winces and looks down. "Y-you think so?" "You weren't going to turn that in, were you? Looking like that?" "N-no," she mutters. "No…it's stupid." "I would say so." I state plainly, and head on back to my own seat. Curiosity sated, and one more reason for her to leave me alone. Hopefully she actually heeds this one. *goto bish #On second thought, I definitely don't care *goto neverdie #I wonder what she's drawing She's never wavered in her obsessive impulses before, yet some school assignment seems to have gotten her attention. Could it be the nature of the assignment, or the picture itself? The more I think about it, the more curious the question becomes. *choice #I should go see what she drew! *goto alwaysdie #On second thought, I definitely don't care *goto neverdie #So I'm not her sole focus in life. That's comforting *set humanity +1 I don't want anything to do with Vi. But that doesn't mean I want her to languish in ignored misery forever. Not to mention, if she has a life of her own, it means she's not going to be so obsessed with butting into mine. Really, this is a positive development for everyone involved. *goto bish #I definitely don't care *goto neverdie #Is Vi up to something? How do I know whether or not Vi's up to something? If I'm not directly observing her, then she's up to something. With that rule in mind, I look out across to the other side of the classroom where Vi typically sits and, to my surprise, I don't catch her staring back at me. *goto paranoia #No, wait. I don't care. *label neverdie *set reflex -1 Soldiers don't get old by being the brightest or the strongest. They get old by picking their battles wisely. Whatever Vi is doing, it's a minefield that I'm planning to step around. *goto bish *label ish I nod, and walk slowly back to my seat. Falling into with a slight sigh as I curl and uncurl my fist, stretching the weariness out of my fingers from holding that oversized pencil for so long. *if (vi_friend =true) *if (painting !="Care?") "I didn't think you'd submit something." I'm distracted from my exercise by a soft voice from beside me that could only be Vi. *choice *if (painting !="Whatever") #I think I like painting "I was not certain at the start, either." I admit, "But I am starting to think that I will like painting." "You think so? I wouldn't have guessed," she says, before stuttering a bit, "Not that I didn't think you could, just…didn't think you would be interested." *choice *if (firearms <85) and (combat <85) #What about her? Is she drawing something? "Um," she bites her lip and looks at her canvas that's tilted out of my view. "No. I don't think I will..." *label vilik *choice *if (tactics <85) #If she has something she wants to show, she should. *set vikindness +1 Vi doesn't often express her wants and needs, so if she drew something, it has to be something important to her. "If you want to submit a painting, you should do what you want." She looks shyly between her painting and me. "You...think it's good?" "I have not even seen it," I point out. "That is irrelevant. Do you think it is good?" Vi seems to shrink into herself, and rub her eye a little. "I like it." She whispers. "I...I'm going to turn it in...i-if that's alright with you!" I shrug. "Whatever feels right." She smiles, picks up her picture, and starts walking toward the desk. *choice #I try to get a glimpse of what the picture is It's a bit hard to get a good look from the angle provided as she walks straight toward the teacher's desk, but I'm pretty sure I can make out the vague image of a woman. Older, adult, but with some of Vi's features. She looks sad. *goto bish #If she wants me to know, she'll show me *set tactics -1 *set firearms -1 *set reflex -1 Everyone has things they prefer to keep to themselves. I should know that. And I should respect it in others. At least in cases like this, when I'm reasonably certain I have little to fear from Vi. *goto bish #I don't care *set reflex -1 What Vi does and doesn't care about is little care of my own. In the end, it's just a drawing. *goto bish #Suspicious. What doesn't she want me to see? She flinches when I look at her. "Why? What did you draw?" "I-It's not important," she mutters, shrinking away and not making eye contact. *choice #Too far. Backtrack *set reflex -1 *set tactics -1 "Alright," I tell her. Looking away. "If that is what you want." Pretty sure I hear her breath a sigh of relief. Though the conversation ends there. *goto bish #I want to know what she drew "I am curious." I tell her as bluntly and straight-forward as I can. "Show me what you drew." "I..." She bites her lip, looking between me and her picture, before sighing in defeat. "Here..." She mutters as she finally turns it in my direction. ...It's not a very good drawing. If her painting is as bad as her sketching, I predict a low score. But at least I'm able to make out the content of the sketch. It appears to be an older woman, mid-30s or so. Facial structure and hair color is similar to Vi's. She looks quite sad, though nothing out of the ordinary, aside from the lack of eyes. "Is the lack of eyes true to life, or are you just not finished drawing?" "Oh, uhm...I don't know, that's just what came to mind." She mutters, "It's supposed to be my mom..." *choice #Why would she say that wasn't important? *set firearms -1 "Vi, that sounds like it is important to you. Why would you say that it is not?" She gives a meek shrug, "I don't know...I didn't think you'd be interested..." *choice #We're friends. Of course I'm interested *set vikindness +1 "Vi, we are friends. I am interested." She looks down. "Oh, right. I forgot." "That we are friends, or that friends would be interested?" "…Yes." *goto bish #I'm not. Just curious "I am just a bit curious, that's all." "Right. That makes sense." She nods along with the statement, as if I solved a math problem for her. *goto bish #Does she want to talk about it? *set combat -1 *set firearms -1 *set tactics -1 *set vikindness +1 "Would you like to talk about it?" "Is…it a choice?" "That is why I asked." She smiles. "Then I would not." "…Fair enough." *goto bish #I'll lie and say it looks nice *set combat -1 What is that thing Mrs. Winchester would say whenever she saw a student work hard to make a bad painting? "I see. You put a lot of yourself into this, very passionate." "Uhm…thanks, but I think you should come up with your own lies." "I see." "It was a good try, though!" Who is trying to compliment who, here? *goto bish #Degrade her effort *set viabuse +1 "I would advise against showing it to her. She'd probably take it as an insult." Vi winces and looks down. "Y-you think so?" "You weren't going to turn that in, were you? Looking like that?" "N-no," she mutters. "No…it's stupid." *goto bish #Well, that's her business. "If you say so," you shrug. Mind already wandering to the subject of your next class as you wait for the bell to ring. *goto bish #Neither did I, but I am *set firearms -1 *set stealth -1 "Neither did I, but I think I enjoyed myself." There often comes satisfaction from a job well done. I wouldn't call myself an art prodigy, but once the last pencil stroke was made and I sat back to look at the whole, it certainly felt like I had accomplished something. Even if the practical part of my mind knew that it was only a picture to be submitted for a passing grade, to be thrown away or put in the back of a closet once it had served its purpose. But then, I suppose I'm used to my accomplishments being fleeting at best. There isn't much argument that I have an extraordinary talent for ending a human life, and I could take a certain amount of pride in it. Though ordinarily, there was rarely anyone around to praise it after a successful application of that skill. "I didn't get a good look at what you drew," Vi says in an apologetic tone, "But it seemed like you were really concentrated on it." "So did you," I point out. Throughout class, she hardly interacted with me at all. Not behavior I had come to associate with Vi, though at the time I was distracted by a task to properly make note of it. "Did you finish your drawing?" She looks between me and her canvas, slightly tilted from my view. "Oh, it's…nothing all that impressive," she mutters, "Kind of pointless, really…" *goto vilik #It's good for a grade, I guess *label visi "It's good for a grade, I suppose." I shrug. I wouldn't call myself an art prodigy, and it's certainly not something I intend to do outside of this class. "As far as class assignments go, it was fairly enjoyable. But anything is alright, really, so long as I advance to the next year." "Uh…yeah, you're probably right." She says after taking in the explanation. "Seems kind of pointless when you put it like that…" She says. Though I'm pretty sure I noticed her looking rather focused while doing her own sketch. And as I was speaking, she did not-so-inconspicuously tilt her canvas away from my view. *goto vilik *if (painting ="Whatever") #Easier to get it over with *goto visi #Why wouldn't I? *set viabuse +1 "Of course I did," I respond. "Why wouldn't I?" "Oh, well…" She mutters, detecting that she might have said something wrong. "It just doesn't seem like you're thing…" "I suppose I am trying to experiment with different things. Do you disapprove?" Perhaps a bit petty, getting annoyed over a little comment. But occasional displays like these, I have found, tend to keep Vi on her toes and more careful with her words when speaking. Considering she has almost no filter at all, it's probably healthy for her to learn how to speak without inviting retribution or miscommunication from those around her. Not to mention, it makes her presence in my life much more tolerable. "No, of course not!" She holds her hands up, trying her best to backtrack as far as she could. "Anything you want to do, I'm sure it's great!" "I'm glad you think so. *goto bish #Go away, Vi *goto jerkass *label bish *page_break Next And just like that, the bell rings. Passage of time continuing onward faster than I can keep track of it. One class ends, then the next one. And the next one. And the next one. And the next one. *choice #Nice, peaceful repetition *set combat -1 *set firearms -1 *set explosives -1 *set tactics -1 *set stealth -1 *set reflex -1 *goto_scene 2-5 #I [i]need[/i] something to happen *set bored +1 *goto_scene 2-5