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Post by Sp❣rit on Feb 19, 2012 17:20:40 GMT -5
Febuary 19th, 5:00 PM. Weather is dark and cloudy. Verona City's rush hour.
Today felt like a lazy day for some reason, with the sun a sheltered shade of orange as the clouds powerfully blocked most of the sun's rays from breaking through. Cars were stuck in traffic, leading a long line across the narrow brick streets in the old-fashioned Italian place. It was a nice place to hang around unless you were planning on going home from work, in which case absolutely sucked. All of the fun pizza places on the main streets picked up attention from hungry customers in search of a vivid Italian meal while other shops started to close for the day. They weren't bound to get customers this late in the day, especially with the night time crowd preparing to strike the place.
Susumu walked down the streets with a disinterested gaze, sort of feeling hungry but mostly feeling unaccomplished. What in the world did he even get done this entire weekend? It was full of lollygagging, since his part time job only required him to work on the weekdays. Such a bitch. TVs in several shops were playing in the background, reporting how a serial killer was roaming around the streets of Verona and was still unable to be located. It was enough to make the blonde frown as he paused and stared at the TV screen, staring at the faces of the victims that were struck down.
They weren't just aiming for young women it seemed, as even males were getting hit by this guy. So far only 3 victims were found, and everyone was starting to get nervous. It was unsettling, to say the very least. Cops were patrolling the city carefully by horse, riding the Girafarigs from Mardi Gras as they trotted past the train of cars on the streets. Probably for the best, especially if people were at risk around here.
It was a shame that it hit main Verona instead of the ghettos, making him wonder just what was going on around here. Were the ghettos just spreading further into the main city now? Or was this really just a nut that was out of the loose? Oh well. He was fine as long as he stayed on busy streets like this, especially when in the safety of a crowd. "Terrible." He sighed, shaking his head as he continued to stand and watch the reporter go more into detail about the events.
ooc; lulz, this'll be interesting. Josh knows about Eleanor too, right? I think? That should give us something to think about (though it's totally not her).
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Post by (ノಠ益ಠ on Feb 19, 2012 18:15:49 GMT -5
[He witnessed her kill someone, if that's what you mean LOL. Sorry this is so rambly o.o]
There were a lot of things Josh hated. Winter, large crowds, cheap beer, traffic jams. He scowled at the long line of cars and had to resist punching something, being that the nearest thing was the windshield and he really didn't want to be stuck paying for damage to his car. Instead he merely groaned, shook his head, and turned on the radio for some noise to drown out his frustration. He flicked through a couple of boring, poppy radio stations before he found the news and paused. Wonder what's going on today? Probably some boring shit about a coffee shortage or—woah, what? He cut himself off mid-thought and listened as the newscaster reported on an apparent serial killer who was trolling the streets of Verona. Josh was not easily spooked but even he couldn't help feeling unnerved by the idea of a psychopath roaming the streets. Well it's usually only girls that get hit by this kind of thing, right? It was perhaps a bit cruel to hope that his own gender was safe but the woman crushed those hopes a moment later anyway. Well damn.
Glancing back at the road (he'd been staring, transfixed, at the radio speakers) he was hit with a sudden burst of frustration for the driver in front of him. He slammed his hand down on the horn and it blared loudly, accomplishing nothing and not doing much to soothe his anger, either. It wasn't Guy In Front's fault that he was stuck here but that didn't stop him from loathing the stranger. The guy yelled something unintelligible out the window that Josh didn't hear, merely assuming it was an insult due to the harsh tone. He flipped the man the finger in response and resisted the strong desire to ram his car. He could be patient when it counted but waiting around on this damned street forever wasn't going to get him anywhere but home. Did he even want to go home? He hadn't bothered getting his own place because he was usually out with his Pokemon anyway, instead just staying with his parents when he needed a place to crash. His parents whom he argued with frequently. No, he wasn't particularly keen on that. But what was there to do in Verona, especially when some nutter was scaring everyone away?
"Eh, screw it," he muttered, taking the first possible chance to pull out of the jam and park his car in some random empty place. He'd probably get a parking ticket for not paying attention but he didn't care. It was hard-pressed to make him care about anything that he didn't have to pay consequences for and since he'd probably talk his mother into paying any tickets (she was a softie) he didn't really feel the need.
He bypassed all of the restaurants and other food shops, having no desire to sit down after he'd had his ass planted on a car seat for about two hours. Stupid traffic. Instead, Josh wandered the streets rather aimlessly. It wasn't a very nice day—he hated the winter, he hated the cold, he hated the traffic, and he kept glancing over his shoulder as he remembered the woman's words of warning over the car radio. At least he didn't have to deal with road rage on the sidewalk. He doubted his parents would care if he didn't show up, seeing as he came and went whenever he liked. Not expecting to run into anyone familiar, he stopped short in front of the window to avoid bumping into someone that he was pretty sure he recognised. The voice confirmed his suspicions.
"You mean the serial killer, right?" He followed his gaze to the television, not surprised to realise what they were reporting on. Serial killers were big news, after all. Josh definitely didn't want to be murdered and gutted in a dark alleyway, thank you very much. "It's pretty grim. How long's it been going on? I don't really keep up with the news." He shrugged, unashamed at his lack of public knowledge. He read the paper if there was one lying around but that wasn't a common occurrence. He didn't drive many places and usually kept the radio off when he did, and television wasn't really his thing. Socialising? Ha, that was a laugh. He'd sooner become the Champion than hear news through word of mouth. "What are you doing down here?" The question was more general than literal, of course, seeing as Shamu was clearly staring at a television and standing outside of a shop. Josh was more curious as to what had drawn him out here on a day that was so irritating, at least to Josh himself. (And he didn't often take the time to consider that not everyone thought like he did).
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Post by Sp❣rit on Feb 23, 2012 19:18:40 GMT -5
Images flashed from the news that Susumu's gaze was completely transfixed on, staring at the faces of the two girls and one guy that were found dead in Verona. He didn't know any of them, despite having several part-time jobs in the city and getting his ass kicked right out of them. Faces were everywhere, whether they were familiar or not, and he had to wonder if he ever encountered theirs. The fact that they were all strangers brought some ease to his mind, but the news had to be unpleasant. The serial killer was still out there and there were people going missing. Again, no faces he recognized, but he had to wonder about that. They didn't look any different from those he saw in the crowd around him right now, imagining how they could easily blend into the mix of people and suddenly get pulled out with no warning.
He wasn't the most noticeable guy either, realizing how bland and plain he could be when walking around. He doubted that if that killer managed to get to him, not many would notice if he was gone. It would take a while, since Pokemon Trainers were known to disappear for a while when out training. A voice startled him out of his thoughts and he instantly thought he was in someone's way, instinctively moving to the side until the words registered in his head. That voice happened to be familiar, and when he saw the face with the voice it all snapped right into place. It was Josh, an old TD member that he hadn't seen in ages. "Yeah. Sucks." He sighed, not sure what to make of the old face at first. It's been a while, so it felt fairly awkward. Yet for the longest time Susumu had an urge to keep contact with others in this group, feeling as if they had to stick together somehow.
For some reason he thought that they were simply going to walk in opposite directions and end it at that, but he was being trapped in place because of his questions. Not that he minded, since he wanted to be in touch with guys like him anyways. "Since the first week of the month. They've been playing the same thing on the news nonstop at the place I work." He snuck his hands into his pockets to hide them from the cold, attention quickly switching over to the familiar face before him. He saw this all the time anyways so it wasn't the most surprising thing around to him. "Slacking, what else?" With a chuckle towards Josh, he wondered what the guy was up to himself. "Guessing you're doing the same thing? Or some kind of night shift?" Come to think of it, he really had no idea what kind of things Josh did. Just that he had many cats, as if he was some kind of cat lady with a penis as an added bonus.
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Post by (ノಠ益ಠ on Feb 25, 2012 17:40:42 GMT -5
Rather stoic and solitary, Joshua was nevertheless confident and didn't feel the awkwardness that Susumu did after the long time of not speaking. It took quite a bit to phase him and unfortunately for Josh, serial killings in the area was more than sufficient. He wasn't afraid of most people that had a sane head on their shoulders and understood murder was wrong, believing that common sense would protect him better than anything else, but there came to be problems when people weren't as streamlined and predictable. Like Eleanor, he thought, and the name would have made him shudder if he was any weaker in resolve. As it were, his expression flickered as a frown displaced his neutral expression. A moment later he recovered, turning his full attention back to the other TD member and their conversation. He might ignore someone if he didn't like them but he had no reason to dislike this guy so, eh, what the hell.
"Really?' That was quite the period of time. How the hell had he missed it for so long? "I'd better start paying attention, then." He hated the idea of being the last to know that someone was going around sticking knives in people, or whatever it was that this psychopath was up to. He'd only tuned in at the end of the radio broadcast when they were going over the warnings and reciting the names of the dead. It was troubling, really, when you considered that the people on the news had probably walked the very streets you stood on. "Never a bad time for that," he remarked, his own quiet laughter filling the air. He wasn't much of a slacker himself but he supposed he could see the appeal. Joshua felt much too strange when he wasn't up to something. He might not have had the excited approach toward Pokémon training that a little kid might but he certainly had a lot of energy for moving around and accomplishing things. Efficiency.
He shook his head before elaborating with speech, "Nah, I don't have a job. Took a break for studying and all that." He liked to read and he liked to read up on things. Except the news, apparently, which he just ignored until it slapped him in the face. Really have to stop that. "Got stuck in the traffic, actually. I didn't want to wait hours for it to clear up so I ditched the car to pass some time." It was far more interesting than slamming the horn fifty billion times and exchanging violent curse words with the drivers around him. He had a violent temper but pettiness only went so far. "There doesn't seem to be much to do, though, especially with everyone scared shitless about this killer." He frowned again, going silent as he sifted through his thoughts. "Any suggestions?"
[forever dying over that last sentence ohmygods I love you]
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Post by Sp❣rit on Mar 2, 2012 15:31:20 GMT -5
Susumu didn't look down on Josh for not noticing the news, especially considering how he often ran in and out of TD with the most unusual schedule ever. There were always these periods in time where he simply vanished, which Susumu always assumed was for Pokemon training. If not that, then probably some type of goofing off whether it was in the wild or in the man cave. No one really paid attention to the news anyways unless it happened to be right in your face, and this was a particular day and age where it was hard to be on top of things. He could only shrug at Josh's comment, honestly not blaming the guy for having a hard time paying attention to the news. "Yeah, it'll be good to know when they catch this guy." There was a natural gap in the conversation, which he felt more than compelled to fill in to spare the awkwardness.
Josh couldn't be the only one talking in this conversation, or else Susumu would be nothing better than a wall to interact with. How boring would that be? Though he was particularly feeling lazy today, he was willing to put up with others. It was probably a good thing to stay in touch with other TD members anyways, even if it was through small conversations like this. It really was not a bad time to slack off and enjoy the Sunday evening, even if it was full of nothing but roadrage on the streets. It was good enough if you were used to walking around the place, which Susumu usually did before heading back to the base. It was one of the more interesting places near TD, so he often chose to go to Verona whenever he didn't feel like training anything.
It was good to take time for himself, even during these dangerous times. Ears were tuned into Josh's words as his mind wandered to his schedule, already planning how much time he'd give himself before turning in for the night. "I see. Studying is a pain though." Focusing was actually a pain, considering it meant sitting down all of the damn time. It was partly why he ended up ditching high school, which he learned to regret more and more these days. It felt stupid being so uneducated compared to everyone else, all because of a reckless dream.
"Ha. You have some time then. I doubt this'll clear up in the next 30 minutes." Susumu snickered, looking towards the hell destined road as drivers started getting out of their cars to scream at each other. So far nothing was getting physical, but they were getting way too pissed off for nothing. There was no freaking way Susumu was letting himself get involved with that, considering some were rather bulky motorcyclists that looked ready to pull a metal pipe out of their leather pants. Josh apparently needed something to do to pass the time, which made Susumu sigh as he stared up at the sky in thought. It was kind of late, but there were still things going on around this time. "There's actually this improv group coming over at one of the bars. A new one, but I hear it's good." That loser Don actually told him about it, apparently believing that it was the best thing since sex was invented. At the very least, Susumu could get some food out of it if the group ended up sucking.
ooc: loolololol I have no idea how this is gonna work. I swear if it ends up with a hostage situation in a Whose Line is it Anyways episode...
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Post by (ノಠ益ಠ on Mar 2, 2012 19:56:29 GMT -5
Joshua nodded in agreement, thinking to the large pile of books and papers he had sitting on his desk at his parents'. He did not mind doing work but even Josh could get overwhelmed at times. Intelligence was nothing without application and so he was constantly trying to better his pool of knowledge with anything he could find. Unfortunately, it turned out to be a little difficult to juggle Team Death, a Pokemon career and his studies all at once. He'd always been good at multi-tasking, sure, but he wasn't that good. He couldn't split himself into three. He figured it would be possible to juggle TD and training but he would have to sacrifice a lot of time studying, which was his reason for the last ditch-and-drop-off-the-face-of-the-Earth absence. Now that he was fairly confident he could have time to himself, he was starting again. For the second time. At least he didn't have to start over from the beginning, still having his team and his knowledge of what he'd found out so far on his journey. That was enough for him.
"Can't argue with you there," he said, looking out at the traffic and watching as two guys got ever closer to one another's faces in an argument. He figured it would be a few minutes before fists started flying and blood became involved. "Glad I decided to get out when I did." Though Shamu had no way of knowing it, Joshua's temper was a force to be reckoned with. He did not have very good control over his anger and if he'd stayed in the thick of the traffic jam he could almost bet he'd be one of the people who got arrested for trying to bash someone's head into the pavement. Alright, so maybe he wasn't that vicious, but it was still a good thing that he'd wormed his way out of a potential fight. Shaking his head, Joshua directed his gaze and attention back to Shamu. He didn't envy anyone that had to brave the mess of cars and snapping, snarling road rage. Some people didn't have the luxury of time to waste.
His interest was sparked when Susumu mentioned something about improv. He wasn't really the type to hang around and watch things like that but right now he had time to kill and nothing better to do. All things considered, it sounded like a pretty good deal. "Yeah? Should we go and check it out?" He'd understand if the other guy had better things to do than kill time in his company but that sort of thing was always better with a friend. If it was good, then afterwards you could enthuse about it and go over the highlights. If it sucked, you could piss yourselves laughing about how absolutely ridiculous it had been. It was a win/win situation all around. "Besides, it'll be good to hear something that isn't about this killer." He understood the necessity of getting the word out but it was a little unnerving to see it playing on every television and hear it blaring over all of the radio waves. He couldn't wait to get to a place without all the fuss. "So where's this bar at?" he wondered, because he planned on going even if Shamu counted himself out.
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Post by Sp❣rit on Mar 10, 2012 16:10:50 GMT -5
Josh seemed interested in the improv group at least, so that was enough to seal the deal for Susumu. He had to make a mental note to be slightly more confirming when making plans, since he recalled previous situations where he only came off as wishy washy about what he wanted to do. Susumu seriously had to stop doing that, before everyone's heads started exploding. "Good enough for me." He nodded in agreement, needing something to distract him from the worries of the city. The place already wasn't safe, then there was this Pokemon Training business, whatever shitty missions TD gave him, and dealing with poverty made his life suck. It was one boiling mess of difficulties and troubles that needed to be cooled down from the humor and wit of improvisation.
Hearing about something non-killer related was definitely good news, so Susumu was eager to jump into it. All he had to do was remember where the damn bar was, and they were both set. His mind worked towards the easiest path to get there right as Josh asked him, making him flinch as his thoughts were interrupted. "Oh, it's right next to that big neon sign with the dancing Simisage." How in the world could anyone miss such a giant sign in this part of town? It was a good guide, but maneuvering through the streets were kind of a pain.
"We'll make it without dying. Of hunger." He shrugged at his weird attempt at a joke as he wandered on the sidewalk, expecting Joshua to follow him. Not as if he had a choice, considering that they already agreed. The sidewalks were hardly as crowded as the actual roads, so those that were on foot had a much easier time getting to where they had to be. It would've been nice to be in a car though, considering the heat and warmth it provided. He couldn't help but feel envious as he walked, shivering a little from the chill of the bitter evening. "It's the Renegade Resix, if you've been there before." He might as well toss the name around to see if it rang any bells in Josh's head. It was a pretty decent place, though if you went there really late at night the people got pretty trashed. It could get pretty bad, but if it was this early then they'd manage to have a good time.
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