The Name Game

[Wryneck]

Ichida Hamura​

Ichida Hamura, an 18-year-old freshman at Hillman Public College (HPC), parked his bike on the side of the Super Save supermarket that he worked as a cashier at, locking it around one of the poles near the loading dock for incoming goods. He pulled a comb out of his jean pants and quickly ran it through his ruffled, grey hair as he made his way into the store. He slid off his jacket and placed it on one of the racks in the employee lounge. It was winter, after all, and it was particularly cold today.

He greeted his fellow employees before putting on the store apron that was used to identify store employees. He checked the time on his watch, then made his way to the main floor. 'Register 11,' he thought to himself. The same one he always worked.

He opened up the register and set up his station, then smiled happily as his first customer came through. "Good morning, ma'am. Did you find everything you needed?"

The young lady responded with a smile and a nod. "Yes, thank you." After he'd rung her items up, she paid him and went along her way. This was how it usually was. Just another uneventful day at the supermarket. Not that he minded though. He always wore a smile anyway - happy to be alive.

 

[Lyra Meiko]

Keiko Yamaguchi
​

Keiko Yamaguchi, a relatively bland looking girl, was sitting in a terribly cold classroom staring at the clock. She was waiting for the second hand to reach a certain number which would mean that class was over. She truly wanted class to be over. Academics at Yellow Trails High were especially boring. The classrooms were freezing in the winter because their heater didn't work and the classrooms were too hot in the summer because their air conditioning did not work either. One would think that they would be fixed, but it was more important to pay for special resources for the upper level classes. The upper level classes were not the ones that Keiko were in.

Keiko was relatively smart, but she didn't believe in standardized testing. She never liked to humor the higher ups, so she only answered enough to pass and nothing more. Her best friend, a cute and bubbling girl named Aina, always had mixed feelings about this. She wished that Keiko used her full potential, but Aina was not smart so she was kind of glad her friends were in her level classes. What Aina didn't know was that one of the other reasons that Keiko wouldn't ace the test was because Keiko loved Aina's company. Keiko would be unable to get through a boring day at school if it were not for Aina's bubbling personality. Aina was Keiko's ray of sunshine. Keiko was absolutely in love with Aina. Aina of course, was unaware.

As Keiko stared at the clock, the teacher in front of them lectured about the Greeks or something of that sort. Keiko did not care about the past, she already knew all that she needed to know. Humans are stupid. Humans have always been stupid and humans will always be stupid. Keiko thinks of herself as stupid too, she is not a hypocritical exception to this stupid group. She was just another stupid human who lived in northern Washington state, specifically in the city Poulsbo, close enough to the boarder between the United States and Canada.

Suddenly, before Keiko could get lost in her thoughts, the school bell rang signaling the end of the day. A wide smile grew on Keiko's face as she jumped up, grabbing her stuff and then running to Aina. They had been planning to go get ice cream ever since lunch. So, after a quick chat they started on their way to the ice cream shop down the block. ​

 

[Alice Lance]

The echoing sound of drums filled her eardrums while plucked strings assaulted her senses; a growing crescendo teasing itself around the horizon. A handful of instruments soon interrupted the soft beat that had been presented to her before. A trumpet, tuba and others added to the cobble pot as the vibrations of the musician's breaths rattled itself around her. Oh so slowly, their mixed sounds ravaged through her thoughts before diving down into her rhythmic breathing. A heel began to slightly pat itself to the rapid beat of the symphony as the butt of her pencil joined the 'bass'.

Tap, tap, tap.

Her vocal cords soon joined in with the violins as their bows sliced deep into their strings. The violas harshly plucking downward on their instruments creating the illusion of their octave being much higher than it should be. The girl hummed sharply, the violins tore into their instruments and a scarred wrist flicked a pencil. She was a symphony of her own; a violin in the shape of an unknown creature.

Azures orbs hid behind delicate flesh as she motioned her body backwards into the wooden chair. A yellowing light licked her exposed neck as a nude pointer finger rose itself upwards; swinging itself in rhythmic manner. A rude piece of white slithered itself upwards to her illuminated neck before darting behind a plethora of onyx locks. Forgotten in the shadow of thoughts.

Fawn Von Loudous encompassed herself in the institute that was more commonly known as the library hidden within the depths of Germany. It hadn't taken long before her tongue had wrapped itself around their thick syllables. Her native american accent had slowly bleed within the background of the country before she was assumed to be a born citizen of Ramnstein. The library wasn't a very hard place to find either as she always enjoyed the silence that it brought. A place where she could empty her thoughts and forget of the troubles of outside. Repeatedly she recently began to visit a much older library dubbed the Fiona Grey library. An isolated building that provided her mind with a variety of skillful reading with the absence of humans to be found. Shelves upon shelves of textbooks that multiplied to an impressive collection of nonfiction surrounded her like a cage. A cage was she only too happy to put herself in.

It was the cymbals, though, that had caused her to flicker her eyes open before she caught a woman attempting to touch her shoulder.

 

[Mimikyu]

The sound of clapping passengers startled Reina from her blissful sleep, her dull brown eyes scanned the plane annoying by how quickly people jumped from their seat to get their bags from above them. Reina remained seated, patiently waiting for the cramped crowd to thin down to where she can move in comfort, currently she checked her wrist watch, it was late at night around 11PM, she could never tell the correct time given the fact she never corrected her watch, she always used her phone or a stop watch if she wished to be exact. "Ah." Getting up from her seat suddenly she gathered her belongings, checking the contents of the back quickly to see if all was in its place. Smiling to herself lightly she slung her pack over her shoulder, quickly hurrying off the plane.

Once stepping off she was greeted by the loud crowd of people, speaking in multiple languages, but their most used was English. Reina's pink lips pressed together in a thin line, regretting wearing her beloved shoulder sweater and leggings. Quick;y she began to break free of the crowd tying her fair hair up into a tight ponytail, time passed her as she went through the needed process and left the airport. Reina felt her stomach twist into knots being in the new place; having moved from Shibuya, Japan to LA, California for collage and work. Her English was some what fluent, with a faint accent although she didn't understand many English words, so her conversations outside of German and Japanese was kept simple, almost as if she were a child with a limited vocabulary. Eventually Reina had found her driver, an old 'friend' of her foster mother, she had arranged a time for him to pick her up, having already picked out a apartment near the campus for her to stay, and a steady supply of money for her to spend as she wished. Hurrying over to him they wordlessly exchanged nods and made their way to the car for what she knew would be a long drive to her new home. Thankfully the ride was quiet, he didn't ask, and Reina didn't speak.

 

[Mabo]

Yes, it was rather apparent that Harumi was annoyed today after her spat with wretched woman at the market, but being forced to leave? Well that would piss anyone off. The small red-headed girl marched her way to a different store--the Super Save supermarket

"I'm going to be late making dinner now! Kaouru will be home soon--there's no way It'll be done by the tme he gets home!"
Harumi mumbled meaningless comments, all propbably having to do with that awfully rude woman. She trudged in to the large store, an angry blush engulfing her cheeks as her small legs carried her to the produce isle. After working the night shift as a bodygaurd, Kaouru would be worn out and tired as any would, but thanks to Harumi, he can get in a good meal before his morning nap.

Shopping basket full with healthy foods, Harumi angrily made her ay to register eleven and began unpacking her groceries.
"Eggs, leeks, milk, pork, steamed buns..."

Harumi checked off her regular mental shopping list, realizing she couldn't find an item on her list.

"Excuse me sir? Do you have Portuguese Sweet Bread here?" Asked Harumi to the silver-haired boy at the register.​

 

[Jerelin]

Leah Hummel: Manhattan, New York City

Leah looked up from her desk, her eyes scanning the office around her. When her brown eyes caught sight of the clock, she sighed with relief. It was almost three. In fifteen minutes, she would be out of this building and on her way home to her boyfriend, Alek Hoffman. After a six year relationship, they finally moved in together at an apartment on 5th Avenue. It was very expensive, but they were able to afford it and then some, thanks to their salaries.

She had met Alek when she was 14 years old. He was 22 at the time, and her parents were not fond of the age-gap. However, thanks to Leah's own maturity, they permitted the relationship and that was that. Once she graduated highschool at 16, and then college at 19, the couple began to think about moving in together. It soon came true in July, just weeks after Leah's 20th birthday.

And here she was, at 2:50pm, staring at a clock in her office, willing it to move just a tiny bit faster. A stray, blonde hair fell loose from her bun and she tucked it behind her ear. Leah had been trying to take her hair all day and had thought about taking it down at around lunch, but she decided that she could make it for three more hours.

Ring, Ring, Ring, Ring

"Victoria Galloway's office." .... "No, she's not in right now. May I take a message?" Leah picked up a pen that laid neatly beside her notebook and began to scribble. "Alright, so you want the lunch date to be moved to next Wednesday?" Her brown eyes moved to the large calendar that took up the majority of her desk. "I'm afraid that won't do. Victoria is booked all day. She will be happy to attend with you that Thursday, though." .... "Alright, I'll write you down. Have a great day."

Thursday -- Noon: Lunch with Roberta Myers

Satisfied with herself, she cleared her desk, grabbed her things, and stood. She walked through her office to the large door that was always open.

"Victoria, Elle requested a change in the lunch date. Roberta will be treating you to lunch next Thursday." A nod and a wave were all Leah got from her boss, but that was enough and she left Vogue to head home to her man. It was date night, afterall and she wanted to leave work behind and focus on him. ​

 

[Lunar❖Franco]

A town somewhere in Wyoming
It is 8 a.m and Brodrick has just clocked in to Hangus Hamburgers and the place was empty as usual in the mornings. With the zombified look on his face, he lets out a loud yawn and does some quick stretching. A cold breeze from the air condition runs underneath his uniform shirt, which is way to small for him. "AAH!" He exclaims, "Why the heck is the air conditioning on if it is 35 degrees outside!" He then proceeds to walk into the kitchen and he shrugs his face at the thought of having to work so early. As usual, he walks to the bulletin board listing out the duties that he has to complete before the customers start rolling in. After reading what he has to do, he lets out a loud and annoyed sigh. His regrets of going to the party last night, which ended around 4 a.m., start rolling in as he sees that he has cleanup duty.

Cleanup duty is basically the jobs that the night shift janitor is too lazy to do. Brodrick heads over to the oven and opens it. In order to see the inside of the oven he has to bend down, and as he does so he sees crisped crumbs stuck to the bottom of the oven. He again sighs and exclaims "None of this would happen if these dang workers did their job right." He knew that complaining wouldn't get him anywhere and so he walked to the utility closet and grabbed a small rusted scraper tool. He begin scraping the crumbs and then went on to finishing the rest of his work until his shift ended...

 

[Matteo Ettore]

Venice, Italy.

The city lay close clustered, ruddy on the plains, glittering in the fresh wake of a new dawn with its flat roofs, domes and square towers, strangely naked-seeming in the clear, clean air. The water was still that morning, only when a gondola or a small speedboat raced by did the turquoise water ripple at the movements. Like a woman's wispy dress that has slipped off its hanger, the city shimmered and fell in fantastic folds, not held up by anything, a discarnate iridescence limply suspended in the azure autumnal air. Beyond the busy market came the music played by those who possessed the talent but with no pay, great pink edifices loomed.
Back on the wakening streets moved the people, dodging one another in merry business as the overly friendly grey pigeons arrived for their morning feedings. Everything seemed so calm, and so at ease. That was until a young man tore through the serenity, feet jotting forward in a gleeful sprint. This male had long dark tussles, flowing behind him as brown hues curiously flickered through the blurring surroundings, his lips curved upward in a somewhat challenging grin.
"Stop! Thief!" A rather wide man shouted now, far behind. He wore a tattered old apron; followed by greasy oil stains here and there, suggesting that he was a mechanic, and a angered one at that. He had no means of catching the fleet footed boy, and the best he could do was vent his anger through his voiced threats. It was done; the young man had turned down an ally and disappeared from the surprised eyes of elders.

"Capito, capito." The male spoke in a cheery tone, hoping on the wooden poles that shot out from the clear waters below, soon landing on the other sidewalk and away from the heat behind him. Turning in the shade of two large buildings, he finally revealed his prize. From his heavied pockets came many gears and small mechanic pieces, not gold nor money, no he found his joy in machines.
"Uncle will be pleased." He went on, fingering the cool oily metals. Then suddenly a sunbeam, a gleam of glass, would stab him painfully in the pupil as he moved into the streets once more. His day beginning with trouble already, all that was left was to continue his never ending search of interesting pieces

 

[Wryneck]

[December 8, 2014, 3:20PM Pacific Time, Los Angeles, CA]

'Slow day...' Ichida thought to himself. There weren't many customers around. It was only natural though. Everyone was out to pick up their children from school. They'd all be here soon, getting free cookies from the in-store bakery, running through the aisles, and bringing their cheerful smiles to the hardworking employees. It was a heartwarming and peaceful sight. One that Ichida thoroughly enjoyed.

He'd just gotten done helping one of the few customers that was actually in the store, when a young girl entered and began to look around. 'That's a bit strange. Shouldn't she be with one of her parents?' He was going to ask if she was lost, but she was probably find. She was finding everything she needed alright, and if she was really lost, she probably would've asked him for directions as soon as she entered.

After a while of looking around, the young, red-haired girl approached him and asked him about Portuguese Sweet Bread. He was a bit surprised. 'That's one of our more popular and expensive breads. Did her parents really send her out to retrieve such a thing?'

"Of course we do, ma'am. We must not have anymore out on the shelves. It is quite popular here." He let out a light chuckle as he led her towards the back of the store. "Please wait here. I'll need to get it from out stock." He held up a finger for her to wait a moment and entered into the "Employees Only" section.

He grabbed a cart and began placing some of the store's most desired product inside. Once he was done, he went back out to find the little girl still waiting. "Here you are," he said in a friendly tone. He picked up a loaf of the bread and held it out towards her. As he did, his facial expression turned into that of curiosity. His gaze was fixated on his wrist. There, two letters resided, in black color. 'L.H.? What's that?'

 

[Lyra Meiko]

Keiko and Aina loved getting ice cream after a long and pointless day at school. Even if they could only be out for an hour, Aina had very strict parents that were not very fond of Keiko, the two enjoyed their ice cream time. Aina was a vanilla and rainbow sprinkles kind of girl, on a waffle cone of course. Keiko tended to go for the darker chocolate flavors. She loved peanut butter chunk chocolate with miniature peanut butter cups scattered on top. This anti-allergy sundae only worked in a bowl. Keiko had tried to get it in a cone once before, but it did not work out well. Let's just say that there was chocolate and peanut butter all over both of them and the table they were sitting at. Aina thought of it as a bad memory, so Keiko never brought it up.

Keiko always did have such a longing for waffle cones though. She always took a little piece off of Aina's, which would make her childish friend moan in response. Aina was very protective of her waffle cone. Today however, was a different day. Keiko's favorite ice cream shop was introducing a new item, the waffle cone bowl! Now she could finally enjoy eating the vanilla waffle wafer! It was a dream come true for Keiko.

So, Keiko tried to drag Aina out of school as fast as she could. Aina didn't mind because she wanted ice cream really badly too. Aina also liked the feeling of Keiko's soft sleeve. Keiko was wearing her long sleeved cat sweater today, one that went past her arms so Keiko could not even see her hand. Most of Keiko's clothes were long sleeved. Keiko was also wearing high boots and long jeans. Keiko simply felt more comfortable in less revealing clothes. If only Keiko knew, today probably would have been a good day to wear long sleeves.

The two girls chattered until they got there, and then ordered their treats. Keiko nearly melted as she broke off a piece of her bowl and took a bite.

"Hey! You're suppose to wait until you're done with your ice cream!" Aina scolded Keiko. "And would you roll up your sleeves? You're gonna get your sweater dirty!" Aina had always talked to Keiko like she was a mother and her friend was a child.

"Oh sheesh, fine." Keiko popped the rest of the waffle piece into her mouth, and then started to roll up her sleeves. When she looked, she saw something interesting to say the least.

"Huh..." She studied the two letters on her wrist.

"What's up?" Aina asked, tilting her head slightly.

"Oh nothing."

 

[Alice Lance]

After a short rebuttal that consisted of thickened Dutch words that were carefully laced with anger and venom, Fawn had slammed the library door harshly behind her. Never from the past years of attending the institution had another attempted to reach out and /touch/ her. Talk to her, yes, it was to be expected as she was revealing herself to the world, but a hand? Not to mention, of it being a woman that she had never seen before. The librarian that she had known was that of a male and even then had horrible hearing so she was free to talk, sing or whatever she liked to herself. It was a bloody outrage that this woman had the nerve to touch a complete stranger, and yet, was so calm when she had attempted to speak to her about her "Music being too high".

What a world.

The cool wind soon began to nip roughly at her exposed skin, causing a hand to instinctively reach up to close her long pea coat. Brown buttons had remained unlatched to reveal a black t-shirt hidden beneath that was gently pulled upwards from the perverted wind. A curse rolled from her lips as she shifted the weight of her books onto her hip before reaching for a better grip on her coat. The smart thing would be to latch the coat up and continue the snowy walk home, yet, she knew about fifteen minutes in, she'd be overheated. So, she allowed the cool air to dig its claws deep into her warm flesh.

As she walked, she made a quick mental note to bring a scarf the next time she ventured outside. Well, that is, /if/ she decided she wished to be exposed to more of this insane, 'Here, let me touch you just to yell at you about your music' gestures. What a world, indeed.

The soft shuffling of her converse on cobblestone filled her eardrums with an eerie echo of Italian music playing somewhere nearby. It was no surprise, as most of the people here enjoyed their pasta more than their pork. However, the girl had yet to try any of this 'Spaghetti' that most of the younger folk would be drooling and gossiping over. To her, it sounded like worms with red clay mixed on it. Ew.

However, with her mind in a state of wonder about this foreign dish, she wasn't aware of the jutting rock that poked out curiously. Brushed with a delicate veil of snow, it quickly took hold of the fabric of her shoe, shoving her forward while holding onto her toes. Books and papers scattering around before the girl finally landed with a loud 'thump' that was quickly followed by a soft groan. Then, within a moment, she could feel a small pain begin to radiate itself from her knee down to her leg. Wonderful.

Fawn winced as she carefully began to lift herself upwards from the sudden impact; her right leg going slightly numb from the harsh fall.

"Wonderful.." She muttered in her accustomed tongue before sighing, arms slowly encompassing themselves around the mess that she had created. However, they stilled along with curious blues as they caught something along her adjacent wrist. ​

 

[Mimikyu]

The silence was broken between the two awkward young adults once he noticed they were nearing the destination. Clearing his throat a little to loudly he caught her attention, but only for a brief moment to inform her. "Miss, we've arrived." His voice was rough as if he had barely used it, Reina had no intention of carrying a conversation and offered nothing more than a grunt in response. She allowed her arm to slide off the small space between her and the window and began rolling up her headphones and placing her phone in her purse. Reina opened the door before the car had even been fully parked almost tripping before the vehicle came to a sudden halt.

"You really have to be more careful. Ma'am!" the man from inside the car called out in mild annoyance and distress.

"You can't tell me what I should and should not be doing." Reina fired back quickly recovering herself before disappearing behind the car and opening the trunk to pick up her luggage to unload into the house. Making a small mental note to remember to stop by the store in the morning to not only pick up her arranged package, but food. As she piled the suit cases one after the other in her arms she noticed something on her wrist, the faint texture of what looked to be a tattoo peeking through her bandaged wrist, this came as annoyance to her seeing that her wrist should have been entirely bandaged meaning the cases brought them down ever so slightly. Paying no mind to this she began to rush up the stairs to her new apartment fearing the horrendous stack of cases would fall onto her seemingly fragile body at any given moment. The new piece of information hit her like a rock. "Keys..." almost screeched remembering she one, did not open her door before hand, and two didn't have the keys on her at all.

B y some unspoken mirical her driver hoped up the steps unlocking the door with a smug look on his face. Once the door was pushed open Reina wasted no time in throwing her belongings inside, shooting a glare of daggers at the man. "Well aren't you a smug lil' bitch." She retorted harshly slamming the door in his face and quickly opened it to snatch the keys out of his hand, her nails scrapping against his skin making the steal all the more easier. After slamming the door he stood outside for little over a minute before sighing heavily and leaving, Reina on the other hand rushed to the bathroom, frantically trying to wash off the letters from her wrist in a mix of anger and confusion to their presences. "How? How how hooowwww? I was wearing it all day." she complained to herself under her breath finally giving up after ten minutes, seeing the color wouldn't lighten up, and her skin was turning a bright red from the profuse scrubbing.

 

[Jerelin]

Leah Hummel: Manhattan, New York City

It was only a twenty minute walk from work to her apartment, which gave Leah plenty of time to get ready for her date with Alek. She had been looking forward to it all week, and nothing was going to get in her way now. She took the elevator to the 9th floor and almost ran to the door of Room 906. The large purse that hung from her shoulder gave her many problems and after what felt like ten minutes of rummaging, Leah finally remembered that her keys were in the pocket of her jacket. Quickly she took them out of their previous home and let herself inside.

Closing the door behind her, Leah shrugged off her purse and jacket and threw them on the sofa. Her hair had fallen again, and now that she was safe in the privacy of her own home, she allowed her blonde locks to cascade from the bun to her shoulders. Next came her earrings which were clip-on. They were no trouble to take off and a much smaller hassle than the sharp-kind. She almost shuddered at the thought. Needles had never been Leah's thing, and even when her mother had tried to surprise Leah with a trip to Claire's for a $10 ear piercing, she couldn't muster the strength. No way, Jose.

She made her way to the bathroom and took care of mother-nature before turning the dials to the shower. Hot, very hot, with only a smidgen of cold. That was the perfect shower recipe and once it was finally right, Leah allowed herself to strip and step into the shower. There she stood for a long while, making sure her blonde hair was saturated with water before reaching for the Coconut Shampoo. She squirted a quarter-size amount in her hands and was about to transfer the suds to her hair when something caught her eye.

On her right right wrist were two initials, at least, that was what she assumed. I. H. It looked like black ink, which didn't surprise her. She wrote with black-ink all day and didn't think anything else of the strange letters on her wrist. it was likely that she had laid her wrist in some wet ink. Leah was sloppy when it came to writing, so it made sense. It would wash off in the shower, and that would be that. No big deal.

Except it didn't wash out in the shower. Once she was clean, she turned off the water and stepped out onto the orange rug that protected her feet from the cold tile. As she wrapped the pink towel around her body, the black initials caught her attention again. I. H. Leah looked up at the rag she had just finished using that was lying on the top of the shower door. She took it and scrubbed at her wrist. And scrubbed, but it was only making her skin red, nothing more. She rolled her eyes and opened her medicinal cabinet, taking out the foundation that she was going to use on her face later. After multiple attempts of trying to apply it to the initials, Leah gave up. There was no way that these letters were going anywhere. She would just have to find a way to wrap them up.

 

[Lunar❖Franco]

Brodrick stood with his back leaned against the refrigerator. His face looked even more zombified now that the lunch session had ended. For the restaurant, the lunch session is from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m where almost every worker and student in town eats. At the beginning of the session, adults are the only ones that can be spotted inside the restaurant. Brodrick hates that time because they are all very demanding about their food being exactly how they want it and to have it ready in almost lightning speed. If it weren't for him needing the job to pay his bills, he would most like yell back at them or even hit them. But around noon, almost like nature, the workers leave and a herd of students and a few teachers from the nearby high school rampage inside the restaurant. Brodrick enjoys this time because not only does he get to socialize with the dim-witted high schoolers but is also able to get some of the female teacher's number, although he was unlucky today.

His eyes slowly begin to close while he was still leaning against the refrigerator. He tries to force them to stay open, but after many attempts he fails. His body then starts sliding off the fridge and before he falls to the ground, he hears laughter. After his body hits the ground and makes a loud thud, he jerks his body up and sees his boss, Freddy, standing in front of him. While trying to force a smile Brodrick says, "Good afternoon boss. What brings you here so early?" Lucky for Brodrick, his boss was very kind and understandable of him. Freddy lets out a soft laugh says, "I'm here because I was told from some reliable customers that you looked very tired and was working very hard to keep up with orders. That being said, I would like for you to go home and get some rest." The smile on Brodrick's face now seemed exaggerated, but it defined how grateful he was. Without many more words, he clocked out and headed for the back exit of the restaurant. Before completely leaving, he looks back at Freddy, and with a wave Brodrick disappears from the restaurant.

With his dazed vision, he clumsily enters his vehicle and drives back home. Thanks to the lack of police authority, he was able to arrive home without being stopped over for the swerving motions he made with his car. He enters his apartment plops on the couch. He closes his eyes to sleep but all of a sudden he felt a second wind and couldn't sleep. Irritated from the tossing and turning motions in an attempt to get comfortable for sleep he decides to get up and try something else. He heads over to a cabinet near his TV and unlocks it and, as if someone were watching, he secretly pulls out a DVD. Then rushes to his DVD player and inserts the disc inside. With a pervy smile, he returns back to the couch and gets comfortable. The explicit noises play in the background and he concentrates on them. However, through his peripheral vision, he spots two letters on his wrist. M.E. He finds it weird that he didn't notice it before, but then again he had been sleepy the whole day. He neither remembers if he wrote it on there or how it got there. He shrugs it off, deciding that it probably happened while he has blind drunk at the party. He finishes his current activity and drifts off to sleep.

 

[Mabo]

Harumi was glad that the store still had some of her favorite bread, so she enthusiastically followed the register boy to the stock room.
As he kindly gave her the bread, Harumi outstretched her arms with her small hand-weaved basket hanging from her right forearm. As her red shawl fall in to the crease of her elbow, she saw a small marking on her wrist reading the letters 'R.S'.

She was distracted with looking at it for a good three seconds before realizing that someone was attempting to give her bread.

"Oh, yes, thank you sir! Sorry, I'll go put my items at the register," She said with a smile, attempting to regain her cool. Harumi turned and happily bobbed her way back to the register, secretly eying her new tattoo. "What the..."

When the small girl finally reached the register, she paced her items on the belt, still keeping an eye on this strange marking. How on earth did it get there?​

 

[Matteo Ettore]

It was late afternoon now. And the weather was fine. Silver hued gondolas cut a path eastward, passing under bridge after historic bridge on their way toward the Capitol parliament. Metal gleaming in the afternoon sun, while hot air balloons filled the skies above, ferrying passengers everywhere from cathedral to office. Matteo noted their colors: ivory, rose, and crimson.

He didn't have time to stand about day dreaming. The greasy metal in his palm and heavied pockets reminded him of his duty that day. The young man muttered a few curses beneath his breath and set off. The narrow streets were lined with vendors, and people attempting to rustle up a few coins, and amongst them ran the young with their fleeting dreams of folly.

Time was of the essence to the Italian, he had to return by sundown or this would all be of no means, not to mention he'd go a day without a meal. Scanning his surroundings, brown orbs formulated multiple routes, his brain working at unmatched speeds as thoughts and paths shifted infinitesimally within his mind.

A minute or so had subsided, and he had found his route. Through the large building in front of him...

"Ladro! Ladro!" A voice shot his mind back to reality, altering the path he had envisioned into a more panicked rush of a plan. "Thief!" Damn, to couldn't be, but he knew. Turning, the crowd of people shifted curiously at two young, yet dirtied men in greased aprons running at his direction caused Matteo's feet to begin.

"That bastard, he called his sons after me." The male whispered, an angry tone in his voice as he too began his sprint in the opposite direction. He knew, if he be caught this time, he'd be lucky to leave with an arm. Glancing up at the approaching building, he knew the only way through this was up. Great, time to see if he was as agile as the title 'ladro' perceived him to be.

 

[Wryneck]

Ichida's attention was still on the initials written on his wrist, but he jolted back into focus when the young girl accepted the bread and made her way to the register with a smile on her face. It was moments like these that made working here most worth it. Or, so was usually the case. No, today was where the irony struck. Where fate reminded him and many others that life doesn't simply go on with ease. Not for anyone.

Ichida was all smiles as he approached the register and prepared to ring up the girl's puchase. Once he'd reached it and was about to press the button to ring up her item, a blue light spread throughout the entire store, turning everything except for him and the younger girl a dull, blue color. "What is this?" His voice was more of a quiet whisper to himself. Everyone else in the store seemed to have been frozen in time. He could still move though.

He looked towards the younger girl, who also seemed to retain her ability to walk. 'Just us?' he thought to himself, unsure of where he was even leading his mind with this. His hand instinctively reached for the security button, but halted when he realized it wouldn't do any good. This wasn't a robbery. This was something else. He was right. It was. Something far bigger than any robbery.

After a few moments of silence, a small girl appeared in front of the eight people who'd received initials on their right wrists. "Alright, ya little bitches," a somewhat raspy voice said. It echoed, and it didn't seem to have come from the girl in the pink hat that just appeared before them. "Now that everything's set up, let's get this show on the road. Y'all may have noticed the initials on your wrists." There was a slight pause in between this sentence and the next. "Y'all received those because you'll be takin' part in a lil' somethin' the God of Games likes to call 'The Name Game'."

Ichida was in shock. He'd never heard anything like this before, and he couldn't pinpoint yhe voice. In a way, it didn't even seem to be coming from inside the building, but even further into the sky. "Don't worry. Y'all can't hear each other right now, so you can talk all ya want. I don't wanna keep y'all waitin' too long for the fun, so I'll make things quick and simple." A snap of the fingers could be heard, and a sheet of paper appeared before each of them. Written on it was the following:

1. You must kill the player whose initials are stamped upon your wrist in order to advance to the next round.
2. Killing another player's target is prohibited, and will result in disqualification and death.
3. Once you kill your target, you will be considered "idle" until the next round begins.
4. How you kill your target is up to you. Anything goes, so long as the above rules are adhered to.
5. While "idle", you cannot see the initials on the other players' wrists.
6. Non-players cannot see the initials.
7. Committing suicide will result in disqualification, and the player whose target committed suicide automatically advances to the next round. Likewise, if your target should die through any means other than you killing them (either directly or indirectly), you shall advance to the next round.
8. If the wrist with the initials stamped onto it is somehow disconnected from the body (i.e. your arm gets cut off) it is cause for disqualification and death.
9. Initials are based on birth names, so all currently legal names are not put into consideration, as well as legal name changes that may take place during the game.
10. Breaking any of the above stated rules will be punished with disqualification and death.

"As ya can see, the rules are pretty simple. Just kill the person whose name initials match the initials on your wrist, and ya advance to the next round. It won't be so easy to find 'em though, so I've decided to give y'all a tool." With another snap, a world map appeared before each player, with their target's location indicated by a small, red dot. "It only goes up to the state or province, for now. Be grateful for what ya can get."

There was quiet for a moment before he began to chuckle to himself. "Yeah, as though each of you can kill though!" His tone was mocking, and he was clearly taunting the players. "Things will get interesting once those of ya who aren't used to killing people have to kill someone to get your wish, or just to survive. That's the prize after all. One wish. Whatever it is, so long as you win, it's yours."

"I'd love to take questions, but I'm a tad bit lazy, so I'll be sending my emissary, Pocoyo here..." As he said this, the small, pink-hatted girl waved her hand with a smile at each of the players. "...so she can answer all your questions when she comes to you. Don't expect her to come right now though. Ya should all be able to figure things out on your own. Well, ya know your opponent's initials and general location. Shouldn't be too hard for ya now, so I see no more need to continue talking to ya little bitches. With that, I'll leave y'all and wish ya luck. We'll meet again for the second round...if ya survive."

With these words, the blue coloring had left the area and everyone was moving again. He was unable to speak a single word, but he knew he'd have plenty of questions, if that "emissary" girl actually showed up. It all seemed to real to be true, but he'd naturally be skeptical. It was too supported though. This girl that had just come in here to buy bread. She was able to move and react just as he could.

He'd have to either believe that she did something, or that it was all real. Based on circumstances, the latter was a better option. He'd rather be safe than sorry. Though, if it was true, it would mean that the girl he was just about to sell bread to was in danger of being killed. He didn't entirely know what was going on, but he couldn't allow a ten year old to be killed. He didn't know if she knew he was involved, and he couldn't risk it. His initials might be the ones on her wrist.

He shook his head at the thought. Like she would kill him anyway. Hoping that she hadn't known he was involved, he simply went back to processing her purchase. "Here you are, ma'am." His tone was as friendly as could be. Once she reached out for the bread, which he'd purposely held out with his left hand to avoid her seeing the initials on his right, he'd see if she had initials, and what those initials were.

 

[Lyra Meiko]

"Keiko! It doesn't look like-" Suddenly Aina's half worried and half scolding face froze. The entire world, in fact, froze around Keiko. This caused her to blink and look around, not freaking out or anything but just having a flash of confusion on her face. This was, until the little girl with the gruff voice appeared in front of her and started talking.

"Game...?" Keiko could not help but speak out as she listened closely to what was being said. This explained the initials on her wrist. She was included in some sort of killing game for some reason. It was not stated why, but that's not really what Keiko was thinking about. Keiko didn't actually have many questions. She was just thinking of how this would affect her.

"So someone with the initials on my wrist are after me..." She mumbled to herself, looking down at them for a moment and then covering them again. "Well I don't mind dieing so this won't be so bad for whoever is going to try and kill me. I'd actually like to meet them." She thought to herself with an oddly happy smile on her face.

Soon the world went back to normal and Aina fished her sentence.

"Oh I was just thinking about a dumb test." Keiko covered up her tracts.

"A test? You care about a test?"

"No, I just think there is a possibility every answer was C."

"W-what!!!!????"

 

[Alice Lance]

Numb fingers scrambled to catch the papers from eloping with the infamous winds. One palm caught a piece about Shakespeare while the other dug its way into an article over a theory of Quantum physics she had ripped from a book. Her features had a hint of hurt tinged along their sharp crevices but was quickly engulfed by annoyance. She should have seen that stupid rock. Was she going blind or was that wool just being pulled back down over her eyes?

'You should watch where you are going, Kira'

A familiar voice peeked inside her skull, whispering a phrase she had once known. Her whole body stilled until the octave was just another recollection she had processed. Not real. It wasn't real. They aren't real.

The girl brought her hands up to her ears, attempting to drown out the noise from around herself. No, she wasn't real. She was dead just like Kira was. Dead. Dead. Dead.

Fawn shoved her lids down harshly before shaking her head. Why did she hear her voice? Out of all times, why did her dead mother decide to whisper in her ear? Was she trying to make her go mad? Why was---

Wait.

The sound of more voices soon littered her eardrums causing her blues to flicker open. An imagine of people flooded over her pupils before settling on an odd figure. Where did these people...was she going mad? Had her mind finally been split open? Yet, somehow, she knew this was real--not a fabricated dream she had created. Especially when they proceeded to speak about the initials.

So, her life was still in danger.

Fawn remained silent and still until she found herself alone around a pile of flying papers and open books; the street light suddenly flickering to life above her to create a creepy shadow over her face.

Only, this time, she couldn't hide.

 

[Mimikyu]

She looked up from the sink as a voice filled her head, saying its instructions of the game, Reina felt a pit of ice form in her stomach as she began to realize the objective of the game. Murder wasn't the problem, the fact she had intended to start a new life was, a life with a clean slate. Furious she kicked the cabinet below the sink and stalked off to the living room, boxes that were open and closed scattered about the comfortably small room. "What to do, what to do..." she muttered to herself pacing around the room, popping her knuckles one by one, neck her neck, finding ways to keep her mind off the idea of joining the game. "Food!" She blurted out suddenly grabbing her back and slipping her heels back on at the door, neglecting to remember the fact she had no electricity yet.

Reina hastily jogged out the apartment being carefully not to trip down the stairs, her eyes scanned the children playing beneath her and shook her head faintly in disappointment. The structure could collapse and crush them. Illogical, worse off the parents that were near by that did nothing to call them back. Reina ignored them, continuing on her way to the store knowing the walk ahead would be a long one, to keep herself occupied she rummaging through her mind, aware she would need to start making connections, would need to track down those who owed Witch money and collect it for herself. Patiently she waited at the bus stop, waiting for the obvious to arrive.

Wishes. What on earth would I even wish for...? I have all that I need and any money within access. How the fair haired girl desperately forced the thought out of her mind, how she wished she could, her pale fingers wrapped around the charm that hung off her bracelet and she boarded the bus along with the other people who reeked of drugs, alcohol, a little over the top of perfume, and other odors Reina failed to identify. Curtly she escorted herself to the back where she could see everyone, her free hand buried in her coat pockets wrapped around the small pocket knife she carried with her.


Mom...