[action] arrival of super high school level good luck (bad luck?)

[rebut]

[ Good morning, Smash Academy! Today you might see a half shoeless young boy frantically running down the hallways after...a small and quick blur that looks suspiciously like a black cat. Yup, that's right. He will never get a cool entrance. Ever. He'll be doing his best to not run into anyone, but he can't say the same for the pursued, who's running every which way in order to avoid getting caught. Apparently he or she has really taken a liking to that shoe! Or just wants the boy to play tag. Who knows? He sure doesn't.

Maybe, just maybe though, he'll catch up to the cat and get his missing shoe back mostly intact. Or he can just give up on—hahaha, no, he won't. After all, he doesn't exactly have a spare available to use instead!

So what will you do? Help a dude in distress out? Laugh at him? Set traps for fun? ...Help the cat instead? Your choice! Either way, he can be found running about anywhere around the school while the looooooong chase is still on. Occasionally, you might hear him pleading for the cat to "Please give it back already!"

...Sorry beforehand for the ruckus? ]

Comments

[osusume]

[Mukuro didn't think much of today. She turned around and before she knew it - someone was colliding into her, throwing her straight into the ground. Realistically, she could have stopped herself but for some reason she couldn't. Had to keep the impression that she was just a regular, if not stylish girl.

Then her heart stopped.]

Naegi... kun?

[The voice she used was not the voice of Junko Enoshima. It was her own, and her eyes filled with hope.]

[rebut]

[ That black cat? Definitely unlucky, considering what just happened... Naegi tried to stop it from happening. Really, he did! But after turning a corner in pursuit of the shoe-stealing cat, he couldn't stop himself from skidding towards the person who just so happened to walk by that moment. Before he could even yell out a warning to "please move", bam, he already collided with the person.

For a moment, he winced at the pain from the impact. Then he finally realizes just who he bumped into. ]

...Huh?

[ Naegi's eyes widened from shock, as if he saw a ghost (and for all he knew, he might not be wrong). Of course he knew the person in front of him. While his memories from those missing years haven't yet returned to him, that didn't mean he didn't know who exactly she is. At first glance, he thought he'd actually ran into Enoshima again (why here why now why), but once he actually saw her face and heard her speak, he realized who was standing—figuratively—right there. ]

It can't be...

[ No one told him about this. And he doubted any of the others knew either. Something like this isn't exactly the sort of thing for them to keep quiet about, that's for sure.

After a few seconds of silence, Naegi starts to speak again, surprise and confusion evident in his voice. ]

...Ikusaba-san? Is that...really you?

[ He really, really wasn't sure how to feel right now. The shock's still sending his mind barreling straight into turbulence. ]

[osusume]

[Mukuro Ikusaba's eyes were filled with hope as she sat up. She tried to keep herself together because Naegi remembered. Compared to everybody else from Hope's Peak who seemed to have forgotten who she was. Hope was irrational and perhaps (not even perhaps) Mukuro knew as much.

But that didn't stop her.

She noticed the cat in the corner of her eye, the one that had stolen Naegi's shoe. It had heard the collision and stopped to look. Mukuro's Super High School Level Soldier powers seemed to awaken in that moment in time as she quickly turned round, time slowing down to a crawl as she reached out and rather ungracefully snatch the shoe from the cat. Which meant that she skid on her butt just a little bit, but no matter.

Time seemed to flow normally again, and with a decidedly Mukuro half smile on her face she held out the shoe to Naegi as she stood up.]

You were looking for this?

[rebut]

[ Oh right, his missing shoe. He almost forgot the now startled cat still had it, what with being distracted by someone who, rationally, shouldn't be here in front of him. Why is this happening? How is this even possible? What sort of logic even makes this sort of thing possible? So many questions, but at the moment, the answers seemed so far away.

He kind of wished he could stop and ask Kirigiri for advice. She always had a plan no matter the eventuality, and he could really use that help right about now. ]

Um, yeah, sorry about that. Thank you...

[ Naegi didn't know what else to say, so he just smiled sheepishly and slowly took the held out shoe. He could buy himself a few seconds to think while he put it back on. Hopefully one of them could figure out what to talk about by then... ]

Now I am the late one... and too lazy for honorifics HA HA I SUCK

[forgetbeam]

[At an unspecified time after Naegi's encounter with Mukuro and being reunited with his shoe, he presumably left the supply closet and ventured into other areas of the school. The exact location doesn't matter. What does matter is that at some point he may be (un)lucky enough to run into another familiar face, although not so literally this time.

Even though Ishimaru has traded his old white uniform for the Smash winter colours of navy blue and red, he's still pretty recognizable by his high boots, his armband, and of course the deadly serious look of concentration on his face. He seems pretty intent on jotting something down on a clipboard... There is a 101% chance that it's really boring hall monitor stuff.

He glances up briefly when he detects someone nearby, but it's just a standard check to make sure they're not running or anything before he resumes his work. Nothing out of the ordinary, so he can get back to work and

HEY WAIT A MINUTE

A sudden realization compels him to look up again, this time locking his gaze on Naegi. No way... He's long since stopped being shocked at the appearance of his former classmates, but some are a little more surprising to him than others.]

Ah-! You... You are Makoto Naegi, aren't you?!

[It's been several long months. While the events of Hope's Peak are truly unforgettable MOSTLY HA HA, Ishimaru has to make sure he's recognizing him right. It could be someone with strikingly similar features, after all, and that would be preeetty embarrassing...]

YOU ARE AWESOME OKAY

[rebut]

[ There's no doubt he'd eventually leave that supply closet! Being caught there with Ikusaba by someone sure isn't high up there on his list of priorities after all.

Anyway, with that particular reunion over with, he simply walks around the school, simultaneously trying to learn the school's layout while deep in thought about what he learned from seeing Ikusaba. So, unsurprisingly, he's currently much more spotty about noticing details around him than usual. Which, of course, screws him over a bit when he suddenly hears a rather familiar voice out of nowhere.

Surprised, Naegi looks around for the source of the voice...and gets his answer almost right away. ]

No way.........

[ Even though he's wearing different clothes, Naegi swiftly recognizes the source of the voice's distinctive eyebrows face as yet another one of his classmates at Hope's Peak Academy. One he never thought he'd hear talking to him again. Or see standing around here at that. Even with mental preparation from an earlier incident, he still finds it hard to believe that yes, this is actually happening, and no, this is not some ill-humored elaborate prank. ]

......You're Ishimaru-kun, right...?

[ For yet another time that day, he's rendered speechless by shock. SERIOUSLY WHY ARE THERE SO MANY WALKING CORPSES HERE? ]

Not after last night I'm not

[forgetbeam]

Yes! That's right!

[So it is him! Ishimaru's face instantly breaks out into a warm but still intense smile. There are two people he feels he can truly be open with, and Naegi is the only one that didn't rip his heart out of his chest and ruin his life one of them.

He writes out one last word on the clipboard before tucking it under his arm and getting even closer.]

It is wonderful to see you again!

[But that's enough pleasantries. While he's still pretty pleased, his smile is quickly replaced by his usual serious expression. It's time to get down to business and ask the same thing he's asked everyone else who somehow managed to escape Hope's Peak:]

Do you know how you got here?

[One of these days he's going to get an answer that isn't "I have no idea." Right!?]

No comment...

[rebut]

It's great to see you again too, Ishimaru-kun. I...haven't seen you in a while.

[ Naegi smiles back somewhat awkwardly, still unsure how to act normally here since no one ever taught how to deal with possible undead in school. What he knows for sure is that he definitely feels relieved to see another familiar face. Even a weirdly intense one.

Anyhow, he has to say something. How to answer that question... Naegi can't say he's entirely sure what Ishimaru means, so he might as well just answer as literally as possible. ]

Ah, do you mean transportation? I think I arrived by foot, but the details are...surprisingly hazy.

[ Frankly, he wants to ask him back the same question... Why is Ishimaru here? But he's almost sure that's not a good subject to breach at the moment, considering Ishimaru when he saw him last, so he'll try asking some other time. ]

1/2

[butterbelieveamanspromise]

[You're not done running into walking corpses yet! But it's a good thing he's not actually a reanimated corpse, because then he would have had... margarinal difficulties walking, much less getting out of his plastic tub without the help of a knife.

Wherever that cat was going with that shoe, it made a detour from a bench in the courtyard to Mondo's head on the way to one of the tree branches- just when he was turning around to figure out where those scratchy claw sounds were coming from, the toe of the shoe whacked him across the face, and he never got to see the cat breeze by. BUT HE SURE DID FEEL SOMEONE THROW A SHOE AT HIM...]

YOU FUCKING BASTARD!! WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, KICKING SHOES AT ME?! YOU READY TO DIE FOR THAT!?! AA?!?!

2/2

[butterbelieveamanspromise]

Ah-! Naegi? Is that you?

[He stopped strutting blindly toward the offender and balling his fists in a snap when he discovered that person to be Naegi. It was one of the last people he expected to see there. Ishimaru didn't say anything about Naegi being here, did he...?]

I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU'RE NOT BUTTER

[rebuts]

[ So Naegi was just minding his own business after yet another strange reunion of sorts when That Cat suddenly popped out of nowhere for a staring contest. He or she stared at him, he stared confusedly back and blinked. Which, sadly, meant he lost. The cat then retaliated by knocking him down and stealing his shoe. Again. Cat 2, Naegi 0. Cue yet another chase scene.

Eventually the chase lead him to the courtyard and he almost caught the cat there, but it jumped away at the last moment...onto the mention and onto someone's head nonononono—

He shut his eyes right when the cat. would have made impact Hoo boy, this wassn't going to be pretty. And considering the sudden yelling right after, yup, he was sadly very correct. Quickly, he opened his eyes again and started to apologize... ]

I'm so sorry! I really am! But I didn't throoooooooooooooooooooooowada-kun!?

[ WHY DOES THIS KEEP HAPPENING TO HIM!? Nope, he so did not see this coming, a feeling that's distressingly commonplace today. Dead people keep popping out of the woodworks and he seriously has no idea how to feel about all this. Sure, he's happy they're not actually deader than dead, but at the same time, there's gotta be a huge catch to all of this... That's always how it worked in stories, right? ...Still, he hoped he'd be proven very wrong about that last part.

...Right, Oowada! Naegi hasn't actually said something after his incredibly ungraceful apology and scream, whoops. ]

Umm... I might be wrong, but...

[ Yeah, uh, nope, it had to be him. Why else would a person who walked around with a corncob for hair know his name? ]

You really are Oowada-kun...right?

[ He knew he was being Mr. Obvious to the extreme, but he had to be sure about this. ]

Wow, joking about a friend's death are we now

[butterbelieveamanspromise]

[Could there be any mistake about someone with as striking a look as Mondo? Deflating out of his aggression, he raised a hand to the back of his head and looked at an unmemorable part of the ground avoidantly.]

Yeah... Who else would I be?

[There were many ways he wanted to greet Naegi right now. One of them was with a big smile and an arm around the shoulders fueled from pure joy and relief at seeing such a familiar face again after the confusing turmoil he'd spun through over the past week or so. He liked Naegi and they grew pretty close during that nightmarish stay at Hope's Peak. But then there was another feeling that won this little rope-pulling contest. It was shame. Shame for killing. Shame for having his weaknesses exposed. Shame for all the promises he couldn't keep being tacked up for everyone to see. Shame for failing to be the man he so advertised himself to be. That was the last thing Naegi had seen of him, after all...]

Didn't know you were here...

[obfuskate]

[ Should Naegi turn a certain corner, a very certain cat will be discovered as missing, replaced by a very, very certain black hedgehog with a shoe in his hand. Where did the cat go? Who knows? Maybe Shadow just tossed it out of the nearby window. They are just a floor or two up. It'll live. ]

Nn...

[ He lifts his free hand, wiping at his cheek with the back of his glove. That kitty did a number on his cheek, leaving a nice, pretty gash there, yet he acts as if it's nothing. The main focus is this boy, the one who clearly lost his shoe to that rascal. It's gone now. At long last, Naegi can breath. As for that cat, well, he'll just have to find another shoe to steal. ]

Here.

[ He speaks curtly and stiffly hands the footwear back to him, his other hand still pressing against his wound. ]

[rebut]

[ Seriously, that one cat needs to stop making off with his shoe. As much as Naegi loves animals, that won't stop him from feeling annoyed at the overly mischievous cat. Anyway, back to the present! Naegi turns the corner, and this time stops properly a few feet away from collision when he sees some...one. ]

...Eh?

[ For an entirely different reason this time, Naegi freezes from surprise. Another talking animal? The last one he saw was Monobear, which means... ]

A robot...?

[ Sorry, he seems to have not registered the held out shoe yet... His mind's too busy bringing up possibilities and shooting down the more absurd ones. ]

[coruskate]

[ Well, this isn't the first time someone thought he was artificial. No, technically, he is, but he isn't mechanical. Despite his creation, he is as organic as organic can be, and he looks as such to a T. Why, oh why is this boy thinking he's a robot of some kind, then?

It boggles Shadow's mind, really, but that isn't important. What is important is drilling the facts into this boy's noggin. ]

Not even close. Here, allow me to cover you:

[ Ahem. ]

I am a hedgehog. You are going to inevitably be surprised, as hedgehogs are normally much smaller. However, my type of hedgehog is far different from your dimension's kind. We are normally my size, if not smaller or larger. You will think that is impossible, to which I retort that the school is lead by disembodied hands. As a result, anything is possible.

[ He folds his arms, knowing that he has done quite well. Yes, he must have. He quirks a brow, waiting for his response. Well, kid? ]

[rebut]

...Oh.

[ Dimensions? Hedgehog? Weren't hedgehogs different looking? Then again, Monobear didn't look like your typical bear either... And well, he has a point about the hand—

...Wait, what? Since when was this school run by something out of an urban legend?

......Yeah, let's leave that subject alone for now. ]

I'm sorry about that... This is the first time I've ever seen a hedgehog in person, so I got, uh, confused.

[ A talking hedgehog at that. Suddenly he feels like he stepped right into a science fiction story (again). ]

The last time I saw someone like you, they were a robot, so I guessed you might be one too. Again, sorry for the mistake. I'll keep it mind next time I meet you or another hedgehog.

HI ROOMMATE (if this isn't ok just hit me up and I'll redo it)

[makesitcool]

[What's this? Someone's coming into his room. Cress is currently busying himself with planning out Panpour's next experimental moveset when he is suddenly distracted. At first, he thinks it might be one of his brothers- they like to come in from time to time and he hasn't had a roommate for a couple weeks. But no, it's someone he's never seen before. HOW STRANGE AND MYSTERIOUS.]

Ah, hello. Is there something I can help you with? [How did he open the door in the first place when it was locked? Unless...] Could it be you are rooming here?

HELLO ROOMMATE (it's perfectly fine!)

[rebut]

[ Whoops, Naegi forgot the dorms here worked differently from the ones at Hope's Peak. If he remembered in time, he would have knocked first at least. ]

Hi there. I'm sorry for barging in like that...

[ Time to try to make up for that minor mishap! But first, to be sure, he better make sure he's in the right place... ]

And I think I'm supposed to be. This is BE-14, right?

oh good...

[makesitcool]

That is correct. This is indeed room BE-14, and your roommate's name is Cress.

[He rises from his seat, ready to be of assistance in case he needs any.]

No need for apologies, either. This is a more suitable time for introductions, wouldn't you agree?

[rebut]

Right. My name's Makoto Naegi. I just...transferred [ except not really ] here today from another school. It's nice to meet you, Cress-san.

[ He bows lightly as he gives his introduction. Better to stick to the politer side of things since that first impression wasn't exactly the best. ]

1/3

[trumped_card]

[So here was one Super High-school Level Gambler, walking down the hallways, minding her own business. Today had been a relatively boring day a the academy, especially after that whole cupidbot thing. Still, she wasn't going to complain. If nothing else, Celes enjoyed the peace and quiet that this school so very rarely provided. She even had a cup of tea with her. Clearly nothing could go wrong...]

2/3

[trumped_card]

[That is, until a random cat walks by her path. In the few precious second she took to look at it, she felt a force...no, a body touching her own. And then...

CRASH!!!

The force of the impact knocked Celes down on the ground face-first and sent her precious tea cup flying. As the fine china hit the ground, it shattered into pieces and spilled royal milk tea all over the floor. However, that wasn't the only casualty. Her make up also met a terrible fate. It was tragic, especially considering the kit it came from was only 2 days away from retirement.

As you can probably imagine, Celes took this about as well as you'd expect.]

Oi! You better fucking believe you're going to pay for this you little-

[As she turned around and roared, she finally got a good look at the person who knocked her down.]

3/3

[trumped_card]

N-Naegi?!

[Her eyes widened. What the FUCK was going on here?]

1/?

[rebut]

[ For yet another time that day, the running gag of a black cat making off with his shoe continued, much to Naegi's displeasure. He vaguely thought about putting bells on the cat when he crashed into someone. Again.

Still wincing from the pain, he looked towards the person he bumped to and opened his mouth to apologize... ]

I'm sorr—

2/?

[rebut]

[ ............ ]