Nexus: Virtues and Sins

T

The Great Me!

Guest
Original poster
Sign-up's and RP discussion is here: http://www.iwakuroleplay.com/showthread.php?t=20288
Virtues characters and settings are in light blue.
Virtue Spots Taken: 5(Temperance, Diligence, Charity, Patience, and Humility)
Virtue Spots Available: 2(Chastity and Kindness)
Sins characters and settings are in red.
Sins Spots Taken: 4(Lust, Greed, Sloth, and Wrath)
Sins Spots Available: 3(Gluttony, Envy and Pride)

A long, deep breath was drawn in through the nose, held for a moment, before the young man exhaled slowly from his mouth with eyes close, long silver hair loose rather than strung-up as it often was - at least around most others. His legs were crossed, shoulders squared but relaxed, and hands in his lap connected to form a circle. The chill air drifting in from the open window nipped at his bare arms, the male wearing overly large, baggy pants that completely hid the size and thickness of his legs, while in contrast to that he also wore a black sleeveless shirt that went all the way to cover most of his neck, the form-fitting dark fabric exentuating the curve of toned pectorals and abs that made it obvious he worked out a lot and was very athletic, if the corded muscles of his arms weren't indication enough. Despite his long and unusually silver hair and tall, beautiful face he wasn't one that could really be considered infeminant, his expression serious looking and all-business even when he was relaxed in meditation.

After some time like that he opened pale blue eyes - ones that looked almost silver as well to match his hair - and stood up in one fluid movement, walking across the sparse room to a low dresser, taking a long cord with beads and a tassle on each end and tying his hair up just behind his head, adjusting it afterwards so parts of it on the side hung in slight loops just behind his ears. Every morning was like this. He would force himself awake early on, usually before anyone else was awake, do a series of stretching exorcises to both strengthen his body and loosen up his muscles - so as not to risk pulling or tearing anything when doing other exorcises or if the gang somehow got dragged into a fight or had to defend themselves from something on short notice - before meditating for a while to clear his mind and relax both his body and emotions, most importantly his sense of self-restraint and his temper.

That being done, his eyes briefly swept about the room, taking in the sight of walls with peeling paint that was flaking off, crumbling into a mess onto the floor in strips or chunks and leaving the walls looking scaly and mottled, a pair of dingy mattresses and a slightly less dingy comforter resting on top of them positioned more to one corner of the room while the sliding closet doors were pushed mainly to one side and broken, leaving it sitting open.

One might wonder what someone like him - someone who had obviously originated from affluence - would be doing living in such a place. He didn't look like someone who belonged, like a Decayan, and likely never would, but it hardly mattered to him. Some greatly liked and respected him, others were suspicious, especially those of lower rank within the gang but given the descrimination brought about by the Nexus and what had become of the world he couldn't really blame them. Either way, he had a mission to see through and what people thought of him held no relevence. It was action and results that mattered, not words or impressions.

Walking across the room, he picked up what looked to be a long, rounded wooden sword, making his way for the door of his room briskly and pushing it open. The two dogs that had been in the room as well leapt up to follow, trotting behind him heavily, one a pure white and the other a deep black, and quite large. It was a relatively common tease that they weren't dogs, they were hoofless horses, but when it came down to it everyone admitted they'd be too afraid to ever be on the enemy receiving-end of the behemoth canines, and were glad the dogs were on their side to help serve as protection. The two dogs had been with him since he was a younger boy, now starting to get on in years but still going strong and still a force to be reckoned with. He was so used to their constant presence that it simply felt wrong not to have them around at almost any given time.

Closing the door once the two dogs had joined him out in the hall, he walked down the stairs towards the lower levels of the building that the Virtues called home, ponytail swaying behind him as he descended the stairs and came to the foyer on the ground floor, gray light dimly filtering in from the outside sky, overcast by clouds that were a mixture of water vapor and smog pollution, making it rare for there to ever be any days that weren't dark and overcast, many Decayans, especially the younger ones and even more-so those who had never been to the Nexus having no real knowledge towards the concept of sunshine or clear skies since the planet had fallen into such disarray.

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The first thing the scrawny teen was aware of was a desperate scream even as he bolted awake, single blue eye darting about the dimly lit room in a panic as he struggled out of the ratty blanket that was his and scrambled across the floor and into the corner where the two walls joined, his breathing coming in quick gasps. It took him several moments but he realized that the scream had been his own and brought about by the constant nightmares and night terrors that plagued his rest, his entire too-small body trembling with adrenaline caused by the terror of his dreams. Nights were often like this though only some of the time were his nightmares so bad as to make him scream out in sleep, most of the time he could supress it so long as he could curl into a ball even if he did wake up rigid and aching as a result of tensed muscles locking up, one of many defense mechanisms he had developed in response to the horrible things that had happened throughout his young life. It took him some time but he managed to bring his breathing back under control and make his shaking subside, arms hugged around himself uncomfortably, feeling an all-too-familiar tightness in his chest and an ache in the soft of his wrists in response to the boy's internal distress.

He was in his mid-teens but he didn't look it, appearing many years younger because of stunted growth due to malnutrition throughout his life, unruly short brown hair sitting messy and unkempt atop his head, messily cut as if he had done it himself and looking as if it never saw a comb or brush. His clothing couldn't entirely hide the boy's too-thin frame, which only helped in making the teen look younger and frail, and made many underestimate him as a result. A more prominent and unmistakeable feature of his though was the extensive scarring to his face.
His right eye was scarred around the lid and sealed, while his left was still open and working, but had a long and ugly scar travelling from just above his brow down to the very edge of his jaw. He was dressed in all blacks that fully covered everything, only his head and fingertips visible.

Running a hand through his hair and further disheveling it, the teen forced himself to his feet and wandered to the door of the small room, the concrete stone walls seeming to alMost radiate cold and made the thin boy shiver, never having been very good with the cold on account of lacking in body fat, pushing the door open and stepping out into the dark hall, walking near-silently and having no trouble with the lack of light that permiated the building's halls and rooms, feeling perfectly at home in the darkness, in fact.

The building seemed just as dank and cold as the members of the Sin's gang that resided within it, an all-too-fitting abode for such disgusting and sinful creatures as them, or just human kind in general. The human race was just a destructive and loathesome infestation after all, deserving only of eradication. He hated himself just as much as he hated the rest of the species, and didn't even care whether or not he died - maybe even hoped for it, in fact - but he resolved that first he had to do something about the rest of the human race. If he didn't destroy them, then who would?

Even the other Sin's that had taken him into their deranged little freak-show...they intended to use him for their own ends but while they thought they were pulling his puppet strings and use him, he'd be using them instead to help him get rid of mankind. Humans were egotistical and self-worshipping creatures who were blinded by their own pride and supposed self-importance after all so it wouldn't be hard if he just played his cards right, and if they died along the way, then oh well. More than likely he'd off them himself eventually anyway if they didn't die from other causes, once their usefulness had run it's course.

Besides - he figured - more than likely they had the same thoughts about him, because mankind was also traitorous and knew only how to cause harm, so it wasn't exactly unfair or ungrounded betrayal as far as he saw it, he was no doubt considered just as expendable to them as they were to him.
 
It was a long trek from Bath to the Vulga, so Diligence was understandably tired as all Hell. He didn't sleep much, but at this point, it was hard not to. What time was it now, early afternoon? He cursed under his breath as he noticed the sun past the height of its arc in the sky. His legs didn't feel like jelly anymore, or not so much. He swore, if he didn't lose that bit of fat on his stomach...

Nope, still there.

Another curse, and then he sighed and got over it. It's not important, it wasn't much. Normally he looked pretty scrawny in most shirts, so it didn't matter. That was really irrelevant. The important thing was, he was there.

He let out a yawn and stretched mightily, figuring such a superlative adverb would fit him. It was likely that the Asian known as "Temperance" was awake long before him. And a few others. Oh, sod it, he stopped caring when he stretched mightily. Now that he was here from Bath, he had a responsibility, and it wasn't to sod back off over the English Channel. He was here to contribute to the Virtues' Meeting, whatever he could. He and his friends needed to invest in an automobile. Preferably battery-powered. Petrol was astronomically priced, ever since they'd nearly exhausted the rest of the oil sources - not to mention, a petrol-powered automobile would go against his idealistic persuasion.

He could go for coffee. He'd gotten used to preparing his own whenever but...

Sod it! The coffee maker was broken! "God--" He cursed under his breath, breathed deeply, and sighed. Tea instead, it would seem.

"Son of a--" The Virtues were out of tea. Where's Temperance keep his? He seemed like the sort to drink tea. A real zen sort. "Oi, Temperance. You know where the tea is?" he called out into the hideout. He was hoping for an answer.
 
Daijoudan's eyes flicked up as he descended the stairs to come upon the first floor and spoken to by the one taking position of Diligence. He himself had been around for perhaps a year or so, residing within what was known to most as simply the undisclosed location of 7th Avenue Inn. 7th Avenue wasn't even a true street location so much as a discreet name hinting at it's true position for those with the proper information, meaning that only those who knew the true address already could locate it while at the same time able to freely talk about it with others who knew, without risking the location to be found. Most pressingly because of the threat of Nexian enforcers trying to show up and put a stop to their gang and affairs involving tampering with the Nexus. Certainly gang skirmishes were a problem too but unlike the wealthier officials, the gang's weren't so unlimited in resources to cause them grief or damages and simply an annoyance that was to be expected anyway.

Diligence hadn't been around the main base of operations for long - perhaps a few days - so the silver-haired male didn't entirely know him very well yet. Of course the Nexus did provide that line of communication most Decayan's didn't possess but Daijoudan was typically a pretty aloof guy with most others so it took more than a few meetings in the Nexus before he ever really got to know someone. He could hardly even remember the guy's given name though he was relatively certain that this wouldn't be a huge issue. Likely his name was unknown to the other as well at this point.

He stooped at the foot of the stairs as he gazed at Diligence through mysterious light-colored eyes, idly crossing his arms over his chest as he regarded the other with his two dogs coming to flank him on either side, the visual only seeming to further back-up the very obvious fact that he had come from a higher social status than most others within the group.

"Probably stashed somewhere in the kitchen if there is any, but I wouldn't hold your breath." He stated, his expression never changing or giving anything away, and the tone of his voice holding a slightly arrogant undertone to it and his posture that he couldn't entirely help having as a result of the environment and people he'd been exposed to throughout most of his life. "Thing's like that aren't entirely easy to obtain in Decay these days and once they're gone, they're gone."
 
Dammit, Faulklin. Ten more minutes. Why couldn't you just give me ten more minutes to sleep? Raz squeezed his eyes shut against the morning light streaming through the windows with their shattered glass and broken, hanging blinds. Why couldn't he have gotten one of the darker rooms, preferably next to a quiet sleeper? He knew the answer to that, but did not particularly want to think about it right now. Not that he had a choice.

"I should really fix those damn blinds," he grumbled to himself, just as he did every morning. Groaning, Raz pushed himself to a sitting position, where he stayed for several minutes, working his eyes open slowly. He was still half squinting, green-grey eyes peeking out from beneath their lids, when he finally stood up and dragged himself towards the door. As he walked, he tried to smooth his unwieldy brown hair, but several stubborn hairs insisted on sticking up, providing Raz with the air of a cartoon man who was just struck by lightning. Giving up on his hair, the 23-year-old leaned on the door and seemed to surprise himself when his half-hearted attempt actually succeeded in opening the damn thing. Raz stumbled out into the hallway and quickly spotted the teen whose scream had woken him up. The dog tag hanging from Raz's neck bounced against his chest as he trotted sleepily after the young man ahead of him.

"Hey, Mr. McCheerful," Raz called out, his voice rough, not yet warmed up after waking up. He slowed down as he caught up with the teen, putting a hand on the boy's shoulder. "Sounds like you were dreaming pretty dreams." Raz hoped that Faulklin would be willing to talk today. If not, at least I'm trying.​
 
The room itself was unimpressive the paint was past the point of peeling now just falling off in large chunks, and even though there was only two pieces of furniture the room felt squashed like a giant had accidently sat on it. Pushed against the far wall from the door was a dresser, it had once been a dark forest green but the paint had worn thin, some places even showing the subtle pattern of the wood beneath, now leaving it a paler shade of emerald. The only other thing in the room was a bed propped up on a rickety old frame, that at some point had had legs but, at this point it barely kept the mattress more than an inch off the floor. Piled on top of the mattress was a tall cluster of blankets, one stacked on top of the other in a confusing mess. If anyone had looked in the room they would have thought that there was no one there, for the owner of this small room was tightly curled up under her nest of blankets like some over grown cat. Suddenly the piled stirred, blankets slidding onto the floor revieling as a sleepy eyed, and messy haired girl.

"Hmmm, wha-time-iz-it?" Sara asked no one in paticular, her voice slurred with sleep and her limbs stretching to relieve themselves of sleep's weighted grasp. Slidding out of bed she stumbled for the first couple steps, one foot caught in her tangled mess of blankets, before she managed to catch hold of her dresser and began to pull out the first things she touched, putting together a presentable if not very neat outfit.

After about ten minutes a less tired and substantionally more presentable version of the girl that had just crawled out of bed emerged from her room. It was on the early side and she suspected that Daijoudan would pretty much be the only person awake this early in the morning. Sure enough as she passed by his room there he was sitting in meditation, and for a little bit she just silently watched him, to shy to say anything and to reluctant to leave. But after a few moments she was afraid that he would spot her so she moved away heading for the headquarters front door. As the insolation in the building was poor at best she could already tell that it was going to be a chilly day and so she grabbed a sweat shirt on the way out slidding the heavy grey fabric over her dark green tee shirt. Sara actually really liked the cold, it excited her, and as reached the main stair case she lept over the last couple steps landing as lightly as a cat. Hitting the front door at a job she burst outside into the weak morning sunshine.

An hour or so later she arrived back at the 7th street inn. She had spent the majority of her morning searching around for supplies as she had a feeling that they might be running low. As it was she had not found much, a slightly stale loaf of bread, a pack of tea, a handful of instant coffee packs, and two bottles of water. She had all of the stuff tucked away in an over the shoulder bag that she kept crumbled up in her jacket pocket for just such an occation. She was actually on the roof of the building next to the head quarters scanning around for any sign that she had been followed, something that was unlikely but, still, she couldn't help it. Finally satisfied that she had indeed arrived alone she dropped down onto one of the timbers that connected the buildings and strolling across she entered through one of the busted up old windows.

As she entered she heard someone call out, Lucian, Diligence by the sound of it asking if Daijoudan knew where the tea was. Heading out to the stair landing she took the stairs three at a time before pausing and entering the kitchen. Upon entering she was enthusiastically welcomed by her dogs Delta and Comet who come speeding from their bed by the stove to jump energetically at her. After calming down her two over excited companions she turned her attention to the other people in the room.

"I must say of everthing you guys go through more tea and coffee than anything else." She said a hint of a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth as she dumped the contents of her bag onto the kitchen counter top. Turning to Daijoudan she said shyly
"Good morning, anything special planned for the day?"

(I will do a post for Devin later, I am to tired at the moment.)
 
Daijoudan heard Sara's approach before she actually appeared down the stairs, at first listening for the possibility of an enemy as he heard two foot-falls landing lightly on the floor of an upper story, being one who tended to always be on alert. Despite his touch of internal wariness he looked perfectly relaxed and unbothered, the only sign of his alertness being that he cast a glance over his shoulder as Sara appeared down the steps, stepping partially aside to give her room to pass.

When she went on to tease them about how much coffee and tea they went through, he merely offered up a noise akin to a grunt to acknowledge that he'd heard, despite not really having anything relevant to say in reply to that.

He noted the shy manner in which Sara spoke and smiled as she turned to him, being more observant than most gave him credit for on account of his aloof and I-don't-really-care outward demeanor, but didn't say anything about it or show any signs of noticing this. He was relatively certain the soft footfalls just outside his door a little earlier in the morning had been hers - and wouldn't be the first time - but he didn't see much point in bringing attention to it. It hardly mattered, the important thing was that she wasn't out to do him harm or seemed to need anything important so it didn't really require his attention.

"Not really, no, aside from making sure all the Virtues make it here to meet up." He replied in a curt, gruff tone.

((@ET: That's fine =^.^= ))

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Faulklin had kind of hoped to be able to slip away unnoticed before the others decided to bombard him with their disgusting and annoying presences but sadly it appeared that it simply wasn't to be, the younger teen screwing his single eye shut with a low growl of irritation in the back of his throat. It was on the tip of his tongue to snap at the older male to go patronize someone else, that he hated his guts - not that this was reserved exclusively against Raz but rather just for the entirety of human kind - and would sooner see him hit by a train or something else to that extent, in the hopes that alienating the man would make him go away.
Before he had the chance though Raz clapped a hand on his shoulder and made the kid jump, whirling around and leaping back fast enough that his back collided with the wall of the long hallway, upper lip curling back into a snarl much like that of a dog ready to go on the attack, whole body having gone rigid.
"Do NOT fucking touch me!" He snarled, single blue eye glinting dangerously.
 
"Bit jumpy today, eh? Suppose I should expect as much." Raz laughed. He had gotten used to playing off incidents like this as though he were dealing with a yappy toy-sized dog with pretensions of being a Rottweiler. "Don't worry. I ain't got cooties," Raz teased, holding his hands up and wiggling his fingers as if to demonstrate the fact. He stared at the teen for a moment, wearing a skeptical half-smirk. Crossing his arms, he tilted his head and squinted at Faulklin. It took several minutes for Raz to speak again.

"Fine. I'm going to make some breakfast after I wash up. I absolutely, definitely would hate to see you in the kitchen." Raz gave Faulklin a wink before heading over to the washroom. Three sinks, each cracked and deformed in some way or other, lined up near the entrance to the bathroom. Just above them sat a dirt-caked shelf from which Raz grabbed a tube of nearly-finished toothpaste and an over-used toothbrush with bristles sticking out in odd directions. Really about time to start hunting for new toiletries sometime soon. Ugh.

Some 20 minutes later, Raz dragged himself into the kitchen in the cleanest clothes he could find - grey cargo pants decorated with holes and a baggy blue and white plaid button-down hanging unbuttoned off his shoulders, reaching halfway down the man's thighs before giving up on its pursuit to reach the floor. Grumbling under his breath, Raz searched the dilapidated cupboards and drawers for some decent food. Just as he thought: not much to find. He eventually found a box of spaghetti that had somehow managed to make it through to today without getting chewed through by rats and pulled it out of its cupboard. As good a breakfast as any, Raz decided, filling quarter of a pot with water. Just enough to cover the spaghetti when it was ready to cook. Raz may be lazy, but he sure as hell wasn't going to use any more precious water than he had to. Besides, he had gotten used to scrimping.

Humming a tune to himself, Raz sat himself down on a rickety wooden chair as he waited for the water to boil. Wonder if anybody's gonna join me for breakfast? He half hoped that Faulklen would come wandering in begging for a morsel, though sometimes he thought it would be nice to not have to deal with the pissy teen. Especially if Devin showed up for breakfast. Now there was somebody who Raz definitely would not mind seeing.
 
((Oh, yeah: ET, that's definitely fine by me, too. Also, sorry again for taking a long time to post. I got to nitpicking about a couple of details again. :P ))
 
Shinobu Yamauchi
~Patience~
Even a happy life cannot be without a measure of darkness, and the word happy would lose its meaning if it were not balanced by sadness. It is far better take things as they come along with patience and equanimity.
​
Up at in time to greet the grey dawn, Shinobu awoke to a terrible chill that sent him shivering in his thin blankets. His residence on the ground floor of the 7th Avenue Inn was the largest room in the house, and also the draftiest, dankest and most uncomfortable one. It once served as a sort of receiving room for the now deprecated old building, and one entire wall was taken up by a heavy dock door that suck permanently to the ground by debris outside. The adjoining wall has a narrow pedestrian door and an enormous window, remarkably still standing unbroken in its metal frame. Thee window is the source of the draft that has shaken Shin from his slumber, but he can't honestly complain as it is exactly why he had chosen this remote room. It was the only one in the house that offered him easy access to the outside, and a view of the sky. Both were two things that he was loathe to give up, as he was accustomed to waking to the sun and resting to the glow of the moon at night. Never having owned a clock, the turning of the days has been his guide for so many years that it is very difficult for him to sleep past dawn or stay up late into the night. Thus he is willing to endure the discomfort of draft and the occasional disturbing rattle of the door.

Having traveled parts of the Alps on foot, and boasting a Tibetan heritage, the cold wasn't really that much of an obstacle for Shin, and he crawls from his thin mattress to place his bare feet on the cement floor. Compared to some of the lodgings in this building, his room appears relatively clean and well kept. This is not due to chance, but rather a tremendous amount of hard work on his part. He has scraped the peeling paint from the walls and swept and cleansed the floor with sand, he then made a paste of boiled herbs and roots that he used to stain the bare drywall a pale orange. Ever resourceful and meticulous in his personal life, these were just a few of the things he did to try and make his surroundings better. Some might see Decay as an impossible mess, not worth even attempting to try and make better, but for Shin, there was always hope and no matter how long it took, he was willing to try and improve things for the dying planet's citizens. Stretching his thin arms over his head, he yawns and runs his hands through his disheveled black hair to smooth it down before getting dressed in his old, worn out grey clothes.

Anxious to be outside, Shin forgoes any other morning rituals, and simply slips on a pair of wooden sandals before unbolting the door to look outside. The sky is grey and overcast as it always is in Decay, yet it seems as though the rain will be held off until sometime later in the afternoon. All four walls of the yard are bordered by cracked concrete walls, the far end set with a now rusting metal gate re-enforced with stones and other debris to keep unwanted visitors out. About halfway to the gate, Shin has worked with whomever he can convince to do a bit of manual labor to pull up the old asphalt to expose the dirt underneath. This he has painstakingly prepared with algae from the river and turned over by hand to make the best soil possible considering what the world has left them with. Some say that nothing grows in Decay, and they would be correct for the most part, but Shin has found that with a tremendous amount of work it is possible to eek life from the soil and grow at least a few simple things. The biggest problem is the sun, or rather the lack there of, as most vegetables and food-stuffs need lots of light to mature properly. However, there are a few herbs and other edibles that he is able to grow in the little garden. Sweet smelling sage greets him, and Shin cultivates the ground around the twiggy plaints with the care of a father. Wheat grass and radish grow here also, as well as a few stubborn sprigs of thyme.

Saved the task of weeding by Decay's barren soil, it only takes a few hours work for Shin to tend to his garden's needs. With a feeling of satisfaction, he looks back over his work and decides that the lemon grass could perhaps use a little bit of trimming and he cuts a handful to add to the kitchen's store. Not really much to eat, it will at least be nice for those who enjoy tea, and he looks forward to giving it to the others. With that thought in mind, he heads back inside and sees that the door is secure, before slipping off his shoes once more. As a matter of habit, he never wears shoes inside, and his toughened feet don't ever seem to be cold. In this way he pads quietly through the halls until he reaches the kitchen, where he hears the stirrings of life from the other Virtues.

Not pausing or worry about interrupting the others, Shin walks in with his prized harvest and smiles warmly to the others. "Good morning all, I trust you slept well enough?" he says in a soft voice. He doesn't really expect an answer from anyone, as it is merely his way of greeting, and simply places the lemon grass into an empty cup on the counter. "I've got some lemon grass for that tea, if anyone wants some," he says, offering without explanation as they all probably know already where it came from.
 
(Ah screw sleep this is much more entertaining ;) )


The scream smashed it's way into Devin's head with the force of a sledge hammer, unceremoniously shatter his dream. Sitting bolt upright his has reached out wildly for his bed stand where his semi was resting, ready for action. Stuck in that confusing fissure between reality and dreams there were a few terrifying moments when he believed the scream to be Sara's. But as his hand closed on the friged handle of the gun reality caught up with him and he scowled deeply angery with himself for having allowed such a lapse even in sleep. Twisting himself around so that he was sitting on the edge of his welcoming and still warm bed he rested his chin in his free hand the other hand still clutching the gun, the cold barrel leaning against one of his temples. For a while he just sat there letting his heart slow down and catch up to the reality that his brain was insisting on. Finally satisfied he turned the gun so that the barrel was point directly into his head and after only a moment of thought pulled the trigger.

"bang." Devin said in a humorless voice as the gun gave a dull click. He always unloaded it, every night since he had accidently shot a hole in the ceiling after being shocked awake by one of Faulkin's "nightmares". Standing up he went to regard himself in the mirror that he had carefully propped up on top of his bed stand. After checking that there was nothing pressing that needed his immediate attention he started to get ready ignoring the sounds of an argument down the hall as he went.

A while later he emerged from his room carefully fixed up and dressed to the point that one had to wonder if he was really part of some rich family. His jeans looked nearly brand new colored a dark crisp indigo, his shirt was a stark black that was tight enough to show off every curve of muscle that made up his upper half. Over his shirt he was wearing a leather biker jacket, black with a few tasteful parts in a lighter brown, then finally there was his shoes, black boots impeccably shinned. As he strolled down the hall he passed Faulkin, and although he didn't say anything he raised an eyebrow at the boy as he passed. Devin had long stopped trying to flirt with boy to see if he could be made more tame that way, that hadn't worked by any stretch of the imagination and besides he was a couple years younger than Devin felt comfortable getting to serious with. Unsure of where to go he found himself making his way to the kitchen in the hope that someone was in the process of making breakfast.

"Well well, good to see someone on top of things." he said slyly as he entered the kitchen. A charming smile played across his face as he saw the boiling pot and that it was Raz who was making the food. His stomach was already starting to hurt a bit with hunger, and so he was going to use as much charm was needed to get some of whatever was cooking. Pulling one of the chairs toward him he sat down, casually leaned back causing the old chair to creak in protest, as he waited for Raz's reply.
 
The voice of another gang member jolted Raz out of a daydream. The young man's mouth twisted into a smile at the sight of Devin in his skin tight shirt. "On top of -? Shit!" Raz stood up with a start, knocking over the chair he was sitting in. "On top of things as much as a goat's on top of eating your shirt," he added, not entirely sure what that was supposed to mean. He rushed over to the pot of water. Already boiling.​

Raz nearly scalded himself taking the lid off of the pot and pouring in the spaghetti. "Ummm... where was that stirring spoon?" The young man turned his head this way and that in search of the cooking utensil, his brown hair flopping along with each sudden movement. "Ah! There!" He grabbed a large metal cooking utensil and hastily began to stir, feeling somewhat flustered.

But stirring the pasta seemed to calm him down, and Raz returned to, at the very least, a close approximation of his normal self. Although, he continued to stir the pasta for far longer than necessary. "So, um, sleep well?" he asked Devin.​
 
((@ET: Haha, I know what you mean, and there's actually enough freedom for foul language here unlike CS that I'm actually motivated to post! XD Emo-boy just ain't the same if he can't swear lol))

Faulklin only narrowed his single eye tensely as the much more flamboyant jackass laughed at his threat. Just like everyone else, Raz just underestimated him, because he was young but even more-so he was really small for his age on top of that. Of course it was no mystery to anyone within the group how he had ended up as a part of the Sins, that he had killed several of it's members including the previous Wrath and only been allowed to live becuase they figured he might be a benefit to them.
No doubt Raz figured he was totally safe now that he was a part of their little rag-tag group but he had another thing coming, the teen silently debating even now how bad the recourse would be for slitting the guy's throat next time he slept.
Of course it was simply more beneficial to have the little pack of misfits around for his own long-term goals so he tucked the fantasy away and inacted to the back of his memory. For now anyway.
"I don't give half a rat's ass," the teen spat testily. "Unless you want to loose your hand, don't ever fucking touch me again."
He held his ground and continued to glare until Raz announced his departure  and left, scoffing under his breath and turning to leave the Hall again. Descending the steps and coming to the kitchen, he idly glanced through some of the decrepit cupboards but gave up before too long and wandered from the room - briefly passing another, Devin, and giving the older a glare as he passed - and making his way outside despite that he was still hungry.
He still remembered that other damn bastard trying to turn all seductor at some point which had only really served to further sow animosity from the teen, the boy despising anything intimate-related with the greatest fervor imagineable.
Stepping outside into th dim, overcast outside and blowing out a long breath, he tried to push his irritation away, a losing battle but he tried to at any rate and took a seat on the top step of the main concrete stairway leading up between the two joined stone buildings that made up the Sin's home, piles of stone rubble obscuring the alleyway path at the bottom of the steps.
 
Avaritia

"This avarice strikes deeper, grows with more pernicious root."



​
Green orbs opened slowly under waves of raven black hair as Ava lay in her bed. After a few seconds, a loud scream came to hear ears, one that could only belong to Mr.Hothead, Faulklin himself. She jumped a little, and waited to hear for running down the hall. If they were under attack – everyone would be up and it would be loud as hell. But after a while of silence, she calmed down and closed her eyes again, bringing her warm quilt up to her face. A few more seconds past before she was awakened by her stomach – realizing she had nothing to eat last night. A small whine came from pink lips, knowing she had to get food soon. But her cot – it was so comfy.

She, unlike most of the others, had the most comfy room. She'd steal so many things to make it homier, including a few blankets she put over her cot. A cracked stained glass window slowly came into focus as she sat up in bed, its colors illuminating the entire room. Jewelry and random trinkets lined the window ceil as well as the chest next to her bed and the broken table on the other corner of the room.

Pale fingers ran through black wavy hair as Ava yawned. She didn't think of Faulklin – knowing that he'd just be more pissed off today after starting off like that. Other than that he'd be okay. Maybe someone was already trying to talk to him. Maybe someone is making food. Food! That sounded good. She stretched, the quilt falling exposing her petite from, only covered by a black bra. She looked around at her collection before standing – moving her feet into some flip-flops. She didn't care much for what she looked like in the morning and was too hungry to think twice about her clothing choices. Grabbing a nice and baggy, almost new, gray hoddie – she slipped it over her body and moved to the mirror to make sure she looked okay before walking out.

Ava made her way down the hallway to the kitchen, hearing people chatting. She made her way through the door, her attention only on what kind of food that was being cooked. "Good morning" she said, not looking at either of the boys, still moving towards what was cooking. "Pastaaaaa?" he asked and made a pouty face at the pot cooking on the stove. She moved to look around the cabinets, throwing out food that had been eaten by rats. Then, the moment she found a tin can of instant coffee she smiled, "Yesss" she said and got a cracked mug from a drawer. Ava filled the mug with water, and added a few spoonful's of coffee to it. She turned on another burner, holding the mug over the heat – realizing that this wasn't the best way of doing things. Oh well. She shrugged and waited for the liquid to get warm as she looked to the others. Raz and Delvin sat there, but not Faulklin. Where did the little guy go? "So was that Mr.Hothead earlier?" she asked both of them, knowing that they had to have heard it, "Also . . . we need food . . ." she said, thinking of places where she can go to find some.
 
Raz was just about to pull out a strainer when a raven-haired teen walked into the kitchen and greeted the boys with obvious contempt for Raz's choice of breakfast.

"If you don't want the pasta, Princess, find your own food," the young man told Ava, rolling his eyes as he placed the strainer in the sink. But the statement seemed almost lazy, with no biting edge to indicate that the young man was serious. He wrinkled his nose as Ava handled the food that had been gnawed on by rats. I suppose suppose somebody's gotta do it. Raz was glad that he wasn't that "somebody." He listened to Ava as he tested one of the noodles. A bit al dente, but good enough.

"The screamer? 'Course it was our little Hothead," Raz told the girl as he drained pasta into the strainer that he had grabbed earlier. "Something sure as hell scared him. Not that he wants to talk about it, of course. I have a feeling that he'll have my head for trying to talk to him this morning." Raz found three bowls, heaping spaghetti into each, despite Ava's apparent lack of interest. "And if you wanna go food hunting, Ava, be my guest," he added, holding out a bowl for Ava to take. "I'm sure it will be loads of fun." He raised an eyebrow sardonically as he waited for his friends to take their breakfast.
 
Avaritia

"This avarice strikes deeper, grows with more pernicious root."


​
Princess. Princess. She inwardly scowled at the guy – not liking his sass at all. He wasn't being serious, she knew, Ava just despised being called princess. It's not like she was Vollerei or something – now that's your princess. She wondered where she could be . . . probably still sleeping. Or doing her hair. Something dumb like that. Ava looked up to Raz when he spoke of the Hothead. She wondered if he'd ever talk to someone. Let someone in and be his friend, you know? Maybe he wouldn't be as . . . mad. Ava smirked at the thought. Wrath not so mad. Like that was ever gonna happen. But maybe somehow he can just be in less . . . pain?

Ava took the bowl from his hand reluctantly, and made a face at his comment, knowing perfectly well that hunting would not be very successful at all. Everything is dead here now – there wasn't a bird in the sky. "Sounds like it's time to visit Nexus." She said and moved to the table with her coffee and . . . pasta. She looked up to . . . attractive-man . . . Devin, right? "Hey" she said, green eyes looking up to him briefly before looking back to her food. She did notice how well dressed he was, and happened to really like it. She sat there eating for a while before taking a sip of her coffee. "I say we have a Nexus trip."
 
Sara

Giving Daijoudan a half shrug Sara managed to pull herself together turned to face the counter.
"A slow day I have a feeling that there might be a bit of trouble in paradise." She said calmly, rooting around in one of the decaying draws to locate a usable knife. Not finding one she reached into one of the pockets of her cargo pants and pulled out her swiss army knife a proceeded to cut herself a chunk of bread. She was about to take one of the water bottles she had just procured when Shinobu came in baring his usual harvest, however small, from his garden.
"Very well thank you. And thanks for the tea I was wondering when we might next harvest from your patiently tended garden." She said sweetly reaching into the cup and grasping a few tender leaves. She then opened up one of the big overhead cabnets and grabbed her usual mug, one colored with a deep turquoise glaze that looked like it was slowly starting to run, dropping the leaves into the mug she filled it up the rest of the way with water and then ignighting the burner she placed the whole thing on the stove. Turning back around to face the rest of the group she steadly nibbled at the slightly stale bread, pausing only to break off two small pieces for the two pairs of eager eyes that watched her. For the most part she kept her eyes down, and an expression printed onto her face that gave the impression that she was deep in thought when in reality she was listening intently as to what the others had to say, the only real sign that she gave taht she was paying any attention was when her eyes occationally flicked up to glance at the surrounding faces.


Devin

Devin blinked several times not entirely sure how to respond to Raz's outburst. After a few seconds of watching Raz bustle around tending the pasta he let out a low chuckle. Inside he wanted to completely lose it and burst out laughing but, he was two worried about his image to let such a break like that happen.
"I happen like this shirt so I think the goat would be hard put getting it off me. Besides its so tight it would probably take a very energetic approach to get it off." He said, his voice smooth with just a hint of laughter around the edges. He also but way to much stress on the word energetic for it to be innocent, but then again, things were rarely innocent with Lust in the picture. He watched Raz as the other guy stirred the pasta his gaze level giving nothing away although he couldn't help but to take another jab at Raz when asked who he had slept.
"Well enough although it was bit cold." He was in the process of thinking of something else to add when Avaratia walked in. She was obviously more interested in what was for breakfast then in the two guys but, Devin wasn't particularly offended as he knew the sleep clouded brain could only focus on so many things at once so he stayed silent letting Avaritia and Raz get more acquainted. When the pasta was finally done and dished out into bowls he waited until Avaritia got here before getting up to grab his. It actually looked like for a second that he couldn't be bothered to get up and get breakfast when he suddenly shot forward out of his seat to stand very close to Raz. His movements were smooth and liquid and fast enough to indicate he was showing off just a little bit. Since he had propelled himself from his seat he ended up passing very close to Raz, much closer than most would be comfortable with and close enough to have sent Faulkin into a fit.
"Thank you." His voice was quiet and as smooth as silk. Just as quickly as he had gotten up he sat down only briefly delaying to grab a fork before sitting down across from Avaritia. He could feel her watching him and after a bit he glanced up to meet her bright green eyes with his own dark liquid brown ones.
"Hey." he said in reply the tone of his voice hinting at a slight tease but, not in the malicious sense. After a few bites of pasta his gaze was dragged up again when she suggested that they do a Nexus trip.
"An excellent idea, it has been way to quiet in paradise. Besides it would probably be good for Faulkin to blow of some steam where he won't kill everyone." For once the calmness of his voice was replaced by a bit of excitement and he have Avaritia a wide lopsided grin as he leaned back in his chair glancing over at Raz to see what he thought.
 
A small, nearly invisible smile appeared briefly on Raz Silver's lips when Ava took her bowl of pasta. The young man rummaged around for a fork for himself and pulled one out of a drawer with a gleam of triumph sparkling in his eye. It was then that Devin's imposing figure appeared beside him. There was a clank of a fork hitting the counter. Raz's cheeks turned a deep crimson. The young man gulped, his hands gripping the edge of the counter. Raz did not move until Devin was back in his seat.

Even then, it took a couple of deep breaths before Silver picked up his fork again and jabbed it into the pasta. And his eyes narrowed unpleasantly when he heard Devin flirting with Ava. Raz couldn't help but feel relieved that at least the other two couldn't see his face while he was facing away from the table. It took another deep breath before he picked up the bowl and walked over to the table. He placed his bowl next to Devin and picked up the chair that had been knocked over earlier, taking a seat. For once, Sloth was clearly putting effort into something- trying to appear calm and rational as he sat next to Devin. He was not entirely successful, as he could not seem to keep himself from glancing up from his bowl after every few bites of pasta.

Raz was mid-bite when Ava suggested a trip to the Nexus. He nearly spat out his food. But he managed to swallow his food before he spoke. "Nexus, sure. But who do you mean by 'we'?" His brow wrinkled in suspicion and his mouth was allowed to hang open, even after he finished speaking. But Raz was quick to amend his statement when Devin gave his support for the plan. "Um, yeah. I suppose so," he muttered into his bowl. "It would do Faulklin some good, wouldn't it?"​
 
Shinobu Yamauchi
​
~Patience~
Even a happy life cannot be without a measure of darkness, and the word happy would lose its meaning if it were not balanced by sadness. It is far better take things as they come along with patience and equanimity.

​
Shin smiles to Sara, genuinely appreciating her kind comments. "You are most welcome. Really though, it is my pleasure to be able to provide anything to help our little group," he replies, and takes a seat at the table. Sitting there, he picks at a few of the crumbs left over from the bread Sara cut earlier, not really wanting to take anything more. Thin as a wisp, Shinobu rarely ate much of anything, and never without feeling like he had earned it. Growing up dirt poor did that to some people, and though he was grateful for the hospitality of the Virtues and those who were much better scavengers than himself, he still wanted to be more of a giver than a taker. Looking at the coarse bread though, his mind starts to wander a bit in the ensuing silence. The thought of actually being able to make bread, to have ready access to such simple things as flour and sugar, even yeast for that matter, sounds like an unimaginable luxury. Even the seeds to grow the wheat and other grains have become impossible to come by, as when the world started to fall into chaos, the governments took great stocks of seeds and other things into lock-down, for 'safe keeping'. Perhaps they thought to save them for a time when the sun returned and things got better, but the result was that they were simply lost, or at best, completely inaccessible to the people left to inherit the earth.

It is a regretful situation to say the least, and it brings a tinge of sadness to Shin's mood, and a soft sigh from his lips. His somber introspection seems to bring s bit of pity from Sara though, as she soon hands him a piece of bread. At the offering, the smile returns to his face and he takes it gratefully. "Why thank you Sara," he says and breaks it in half, pocketing part of it to save for later. The rest he eats slowly, pinching off little peaces and chewing thoughtfully while he watches the others.

Finishing the last few bites, he looks up to Daijoudan and Lucian and seems to consider his words for a moment before speaking. "So, we are to have a meeting today then? Anything important?" he asks, a bit curious as to what the rest of his day will hold
 
Daijoudan mainly stood off against the door frame of the kitchen in silence, watching the others until Shin gazed over at him and the one known as Diligence, his own expression still just as impassive and impossible to read as usual.
"Mainly to catch each other up on possible missed news and collectively figure out what sort of things need doing." Daijoudan relayed, idly shifting his weight a little from the door frame so he could partially uncross one arm and reached up to massage the pits of his eyes, which were still just a touch heavy with tiredness though it was simply a result of it still being morning and would pass given a little more time. "Things like supplies, any major events, fixing important things, patrol, or whatever else. More than likely there will be things to do regarding the Nexus as well."

**********************​

Faulklin blew out a breath even as he wrapped his arms around his legs, pulling his knees to his chest as a shiver crept up his spine. He hated the cold.
Hated it, hated it, hated it.
Of course he hated a lot of things but that was beside the point - or maybe it was the point - but given his lack of body mass, his clothes not quite able to hide his anorexic frame, he couldn't really maintain adequate body heat out in the cold and found himself back on his feet and heading inside again before long, idly wandering towards the kitchen.
He heard the voices of the others and walked silently, being well-versed in the art of sneaking and stepping lightly so it was no trouble making his way close to the room without detection and pausing to listen for a moment, catching the last bits and plastering a scowl on his face even as he rounded the corner, single good eye alight with suspicion even as he made his presence known with a slight growl to his voice.
"And exactly what would be good for me?" He demanded, gaze shifting between them with challenging distrust, shoving his hands into his pockets and absently fingering the handle of a sheathed knife concealed within it, keeping it on his person's just as a precaution.
 
Raz jumped at the sound of somebody behind him, turning to stare at none other than Faulklin himself. It took a moment before Raz remembered that he still had pasta in his mouth and swallowed it. "A number of things would be good for you," he told the boy. "Food, for a start. There's still pasta left in that strainer on the counter. It's yours. Eat up." He turned back to his own food and eagerly shoveled down the last bits of pasta in his bowl. Getting up, Raz dropped the bowl into the sink and grabbed a clean bowl for Faulklin. Well, as clean as things got around here. He slid the new bowl down the counter so that it bumped up against the strainer with the clink of ceramic on metal.

"We're running low on food, though." Raz glanced up suspiciously at Faulklin. "But that is not to be an excuse for you to avoid food. Ava and Devin thought an excursion to the Nexus might be in order. They think you ought to get out some. Join the raiding party, so to speak. Whaddaya say?" Raz's lips curled into a smile. "Could be fun, eh? And goodness knows you could use the sun." He winked at Faulklin, though he was prepared to duck should the teen decide to hurl something at him. Faulklin did not seem to have much of a sense of humor.​
 
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