Cross Effects 3.0 - October 21, 2015—June 23, 2016

[Panda]

Annabeth

The Hunter sighed as the girl on top of her refused to cooperate before deciding that the awkwardness of carrying this girl around would be worth the awkwardness of not laying on the street. Focusing for a moment, Annabeth let her Ten come up, a soft glow enveloping her as her Nen, imbued with the affection she couldn't help but feel for the girl right now, flowed around her body. Continuing to scratch behind the girl's antlers, Annabeth willed more aura from her, going into Ren and feeling new power flood her form. With that, the Hunter sat up, holding onto the girl, before popping up onto her feet. Continuing to scratch behind the girl's antlers, Annabeth continued on her way, looking for a coffee shop that wasn't too full.

"Say, what's your name?" Annabeth asked she continued on her way with her odd cargo, "I'm Annabeth."

[Umbra of Chaos]

Oren

As a warm feeling flowed over them the Fae simply tightened her grasp on the strangely dressed woman. While Oren was a bit taller her frame was a bit smaller and she seemed a bit thinner and smaller in comparison. A mix of a purr and a sigh escaped her lips as she rose. A single eye opened and looked at Annabeth with a single catlike pupil as the Formless One spoke. "Annabeth. Annabeth. Ann? Anna? Beth? I'm Oren."

She rolled the name inside her mind and plucked apart the letters with the analytical mind of a scientist. Was it the truth? Was it real? She dismissed the idea with ease. None of it was real. Not yet anyways.

[Panda]

Annabeth

"Oren, huh?"  Annabeth mused, "That's a pretty name."

After a while, she managed to find a coffee shop with only a few other people in it. The Hunter went up to the counter and got some coffee for herself and the girl, hoping she liked coffee, before they made their way to one of the tables. Frowning for a moment as she put the coffee down on it, Annabeth considered her options before deciding.

"Okay, Oren, here's the deal," Annabeth said, not scratching behind the girl's antlers, or anywhere for that matter, "You let go of me and sit down, and I'll start scratching again, okay?"

[Umbra of Chaos]

Oren

Both of her eyes lazily opened and stared at the person who had suddenly decided to stop scratching. Then the Fae suddenly tightened her grasp and pressed her lips against the other woman's, and her tongue soon pushed its way into the darker girl's mouth. The taste of spices and sweet, wild berries mix for a moment as she explored Annabeth's mouth before the Fae pulled back. She then let go and yawned again before responding. "Kay."

With that said she sat down in one of the chairs and waited placidly for her former cushion to take a seat. The barest trace of the spices lingered in her mouth for a bit as she hummed and carefully picked up one of the cups.

[Kat]

Richter

"I'm afraid Count Julius Richter's reputation haven't reached this strange place." He answered with his arms crossed, looking at the two from afar as if he was inspecting them. "As I said before, I claimed this forest as my own, but you are not trespassing. However, as as the lord of this land, I have duty to know anyone who visits my domain. The lady here disclosed her reasons why she is here, but what about you, sir?" Richter already was half sure that the ridiculously woman was not an ordinary person, but he didn't reveal his suspicions yet. He valued some subtlety after all.

(OOC: The reply should have been up much earlier, I "blame" Panda).

[Panda]

Annabeth

Oren opened her eyes at the Hunter's offer, part of Annabeth suddenly feeling thankful she still had a Ten up when she felt Oren's grip tighten.

Against all expectations however, the girl simply pressed her lips to Annabeth’s, the last of wild berries flooding the Hunter's mouth as Oren's tongue slipped past her lips and probed about her mouth.

Then, all too soon,  it was over. Oren slipped away to take a seat, carefully picking up one of the cups as she hummed to herself. Anne stood there for all of a moment, mouth slightly open and staring, before sitting down next to Oren, a slight blush evident even through her tanned skin. Remembering their agreement, Annabeth started scratching behind Oren's antlers with one hand while the other picked up her cup and took a small sip, pleased to find that the coffee was actually somewhat strong.

"So...what brought that on?" Annabeth asked, still somewhat confused.

[SINIB]

Oka

Oka, finally dressed, came out of her hiding place behind the dumpster.

"I'm not a child, please don't call me that." She said to Lumen, walking up to her before turning to Jin with a smile. "And I'd love to have you as a guide, mister...?" She trailed off, asking for his name.

[Umbra of Chaos]

Oren

The girl lazily swirled the fluid in her cup for a moment but refused to do so much as take a sip. Instead she rummaged around one of her pockets until she retrieved a small sack. She reached into it and pulled out a single scarlet berry before popping it into her mouth. There was a slight coppery taste to it along with a wave of energy that wiped away any tiredness.

Oren left her chair and forced herself onto Annabeth's lap. The chair was so much less comfortable. "I just wanted to know what you tasted like. It was pretty good! I'll try again later, okay?"

[Panda]

Annabeth

Annabeth watched as Oren popped an odd scarlet berry into her mouth, her curiosity piqued as she sipped on her coffee. The Hunter was about to bring the cup to her lips once more when reflexes honed to a razor's edge moved the hand holding the cup up and out of the way as Oren moved herself back onto Anne's lap. The cowgirl's surprised look lasted for all of a few seconds before a bright blush made itself known on her face as Oren's declaration registered.

Struggling to find words for a few seconds, the Hunter heaved an exasperated sigh, resigning herself to being the admittedly adorable girl's cushion for the time being as she took another sip of her coffee, reveling in the harsh warmth flowing down her throat.

[Umbra of Chaos]

Oren

The red tinting the tanned girl's cheeks brought some delight to the Fae. It meant that it was working. She carefully removed the cup from the cowgirl's hands and placed it on the table before planting a few teasing kisses along the other girl's neck. "You look so adorable when you're red! Do it again."

Anything that Annabeth may have done or said to appease the girl with antlers would be rudely interrupted as the slightly taller girl planted her feet onto the ground and pushed hard enough to send them both toppling over with a loud crash. The agile girl had somehow managed to maneuver herself on top of the younger girl despite the relative discomfort and she smiled down on her with feral grace.

[Panda]

Annabeth

Annabeth gave the girl a flustered look when she removed the cup from the Hunter's hand, only for her blush to flare as Oren planted a few teasing kisses along her neck.

"Hey, sto-" Annabeth started before Oren cut her off by tilting the chair over, sending them to the ground with a loud crash. This time, Anne had managed to reflexively bring up a Ren shroud, keeping her from being dazed upon hitting the floor. To her further embarrassment, Oren managed to land on top of her, leaving the Hunter with the girl straddling her and every eye on the store on them.

"H-hey, can we not do this in the middle of a store?" Annabeth sputtered, "We're kinda making a scene here."

[Umbra of Chaos]

Oren

Catlike pupils moved to look at the people staring back at the two of them but she lacked even the slightest hint of embarrassment. Almost absentmindedly her hand began undoing the buttons on the tanned girl's outfit as she innocently asked, "Oh, are we? I don't think we are. Whatever we're doing in this store seems just fine."

[Panda]

Emily

Sighing as Mordred fell to the ground, Emily moved to pick her up when she started floating, a strange design appearing under her. Guessing that it was a glyph of some kind, Emily took a moment to process the new information. Listening as Bellitanus described the fight offhandedly, Emily decided to help out anyway.

"Thanks," Emily said, calling up the necessary Contract, "But you really don't need to go to such lengths."

Moving with a nurse's practiced ease at moving people without waking them up, the Changeling reached into the cushion of wind as if it were nothing more than a light spring breeze, shielded by her Contract as she lifted Mordred up and carefully deposited her back in the chair. Grabbing a nearby ottoman, the Changeling maneuvered it in front of the chair, lifting up Mordred's legs to rest them on the Ottoman. With the Summer Courtier thusly secured against falling off again, Emily sat down next to her just in case.

[Panda]

Annabeth

Annabeth grew more flustered as Oren started prying open her buttons, unable to help glancing at the people around them, some of them peering over curiously as if to try to catch a glimpse of what Oren was revealing.

"Okay, that's enough," Annabeth said, her Ren tinged with a hint of annoyance as she caught hold of Oren's arms before shifting her hands away gently, "I'm sorry, but we shouldn't be doing this in front of all these people."

[Umbra of Chaos]

Oren

The dark haired girl blinked owlishly for a moment but did pull her hands back. She stood up and instead of pulling the other woman up simply said, "I suppose if you don't wanna stay then we should go."

She nimbly flipped over the other girl (although she managed to sneak in a single wink) and easily exited the store in a few leaps and bounds. From outside she waved at Annabeth through the windows and tapped her bare foot impatiently.