Upon Closer Inspection

Cerise is off being Cerise! Aiding a little friend with small pick pocketing, he hoped to score another lover, but gets interrupted by Mei Ming, fully establishing her dominance and control of Cerise in public with Cole watching.

### RP Repository Summary: Cerise meets Aethyris and Aerys in the library (these two characters are no longer in our group).

Cerise and Aethyris begin to flirt, with Aethyris being a little hesitant since she is not sure whether Cerise is a boy or girl, only being interested in girls. Mei Ming comes and interrupts the two though, to Cerise's annoyance. She acts possessive of Cerise, even kissing him just to show of that he belongs to her, which makes Cerise very happy, making up for the way she had interrupted. Cole sees and is greatly upset, using a smoke bomb to escape "unseen", as he is seen by Cannaid, Cerise, and Mei Ming. Mei Ming is touched that Cerise tried to protect her when the smoke bomb went off. Luceila, Sable, and Cannaid watch.

## EXP Awarded

**Cerise Moani** - 120 EXP (More insight is provided on Cerise’s manner of flirting and attraction. His abusive relationship with Mei Ming is publicly confirmed.)

**Mei Ming** - 120 EXP (Mei Ming, despite her personality, places a great deal of importance on Cerise, ending her sweet personality and love for Cole charades.)

**Cole Tarnung** - 80 EXP (This is the precedent to a major heartbreaking moment for Cole as he observes what he thinks is his love behaving in a way he had never wanted to acknowledge before.)

## Roleplay

   Aerys was seemingly by herself in the library. Her ten was somewhere around the building, who knew where, but she was sitting quietly by herself in a corner, reading a fictional book.

   Aethyris was busy talking to the librarian, trying to distract her enough with some possibly menial task to picket the little lock on her desk drawer.

Unavailable Cerise flirts ;)

The small girl took a step back only to find a bookshelf blocking her way. "Um, excuse me could you, uh, maybe move back?" Aethyris stammered, barely breathing for fear of giving away anything, "T-that's a little too close". A nervous glance around saw no one nearby. She knew her sister was in the building. Somewhere. Not like Aerys would care much that Aethyris was being hit on though. She would probably sit back and watch as Aethyris spiraled into a mess of nervousness. "Are... Are you a... Um..." she hesitated, not sure how to proceed with the question of whether Cerise was a guy or a girl. She had her own identity and, if Cerise was a guy who looked like a girl, would respect him for it. But she was still lesbian herself and even though this incredibly stunning feminine looking person was making advances on her, it just wouldn't feel right if she was actually a guy.

Ah. Yet another rejection. Cerise was sure he got this one pinned right, especially with that little lock picking move she pulled earlier. Not to say that everyone who picked a lock was down for some pay to play fun, but Cerise got a general feeling that Aethyris came from a similar background to himself. "Ah, sorry about that, I guess I was getting a little over eager. But yes... It's true... I'm a prostitute." Cerise said, backing off, and misinterpreting Aethyris's concerns. "But don't worry! Although I don't have any doubts about your ability to pay, taking a look at your clothes... I'll make this one a freebie! I'm still trying to establish a reputation here, and you're awful cute, so I think we both have something to benefit from this." Cerise said, not wanting to give up on Aethyris just yet. Cerise wasn't always attracted to everyone he hit on, but he genuinely liked this girl. This wasn't so surprising however, considering Cerise had a penchant for narcissism; Aethyris's androgynous fashion in combination with her white hair, striking eyes, and what Cerise assumed was a history of living on the streets did have some surface level similarities to Cerise himself.

"Prostitute...?" Aethyris blinked. It took her a little bit to figure out that Cerise had misinterpreted her question, "N-no. That's... That's not at all what I meant". The motion of backing off when not wanted, or at least getting the feeling that he wasn't wanted, inched Aethyris' opinion closer to the thought of Cerise possibly being a girl. If that was the case, and Cerise was a she, Aethyris felt really foolish even thinking that Cerise was the opposite gender. A light blush flooded her face at the compliments and she reached out, a hand brushing his upper arm, "No it was just... I was just wondering if... Oh never mind". The longer she she gazed into his eyes, the more idiotic she felt for assuming such things

Mei Ming had been searching for her loyal pet, now able to use her semblance again to see, she still tapped her cane around to aid in the sonic emissions that contributed to her sight. She noticed her lovely companion talking to another girl. This made her feel slightly angered, of course she expected that kind of behavior from Cerise, however, it still bothered her that she didn't have complete control over him. She stayed a distance in the library but made sure to keep an eye on them. Coming close to them when she thought they were getting too close for her comfort, she proceeded to greet them, "Why, hello, dear, who is this lovely young lady you are talking to?" she asked pleasantly, "Oh, I am sorry, am I interrupting something?"

Aethyris flushed at the sudden appearance of the newcomer. Cerise's body was awkwardly close to her own and the small amount of space between the two left little for anyone to imagine what was "happening". "N-no not at all," the white haired girl slipped past Cerise's arms, using the distraction to gain a bit of distance, "We were just, um, talking". The feeling of Cerise's hot breath on her skin was still fresh and another small shiver ran down her spine.

Cerise noticed Mei Ming walking towards them, starting to get a little scared but also a little happy that he attracted her attention. He was mostly annoyed though, seeing as now his chances with Aethyris were zero to none. But when Cerise thought about it, it was kind of fair, considering he did interrupt Mei Ming and Cole a number of times by now... "Oh, hey Mei Ming... No, we were just working out a little... business transaction... But what brings you here to the library? Don't you have Cole to attend to?" Cerise said, voice slightly harsh to make his annoyance clear. Showing Mei Ming some defiance may not have been the best idea, but Cerise had other things on his mind.

Cole was sitting by a corner, watching from the shadows, not wanting to intrude when he heard Mei's voice, peering out of the shadows and corner to see who was there.
 Knowing that Mei might use her semblance to see, Cole tried his best to hid himself after reading a book on " How to hide from sonic sensor".
 "Th-that was Mei. Who is she talking to?" He asked himself
 "Her partner in crime. The so called Cerise you buffoon!" The voice spoke as Cole watched Cerise, Mei and the new figure

Aethyris glanced between the two. Obviously they knew each other and, just maybe, had some history from the way they interacted. While she had been a little attracted to the other white haired "girl", it was such a rare hair color, this new person was intimidating and clearly considered Cerise her own.

Mei Ming smiled and took a couple steps towards the girl, "Of course you were just talking," she said in a pleasant tone of voice, "If you think in any way that Cerise would go for anything more with you than simple playing around, you are mistaken. Someone of your... appearance would never be able to meet this escort's standards. You must realize that, do you not? So I suggest taking this to heart," She smiled at her, then turned to Cerise, "I was looking for you actually, dear, for you and I have some 'business'." she said.

Cole moved in the shadows and crept behind the bookshelves, treading lightly. Trying to eavesdrop on their conversation

Aethyris blinked. She had never crossed paths with someone this venomous, this vindictive, this malicious. Well, not in a while at least. She did not like the tone the girl took with her. "Excuse me but who do you think you are? Princess of the castle? Nuh uh. I am quite capable of thinking for myself, as is Cerise here," there was a slight question when she said his name, "You, on the other hand, are a brain dead little brat who thinks everyone is only entitled to your opinion".

Aerys glanced up. She couldn't see what was going on but she heard voices rising slightly. She could also feel something inside her as her twin stetted getting mad. She rolled her eyes and stood, sighing as she did so. <Better check this out and make sure she isn't about to kill anyone> Aerys thought glumly.

"Oh, I do apologize," Mei Ming said, smiling, "I am afraid you are mistaken. I never meant to enforce my opinion, simply stating the mere truth of the situation. You, my wonderful friend, are simply an incompetent little girl with no class or social standing. And do not merit Cerise's company. And by no means are you any match for me," she said. "And my are we proper and selective with our words?"

Cole witnessed first hand of what Mei Ming was like.
He felt a slight betrayal in him but he tried to brush it off.
"There you have it! Your Mei Ming's true nature! She is just playing nice and sweet in front of you!"
"No...She's like that because the other person...Aethyris...Was rude to her and Cerise..." Cole thought to himself
"Oh you fool! Stop defending her!" The voice spoke as COle continued to watch on

Aerys slowly walked around the corner and leaned against the bookshelf, watching the spectacle unfold. Appearing casual and relaxed, she was actually ready to jump in at a moments notice and defend her sister.

Aethyris chuckled and switched tactics, "Ah I see. Well I do apologize myself them. I had no idea you were merely stating your truth and enlightening the poor, uninformed souls. Please, by all means go about your day whispering the sweet sound of truth into everyone's ears. But do everyone a favor as well," she replied, deciding to smile back, "And off yourself. We appreciate the enlightenment, we really do. But I am very certain everyone here is highly capable of decoding what to do on their own. You interrupted us and began 'truthfully' telling it how you think it is, despite your obvious lack of insight. That in itself shows a lack of class on your part."

Cole was unsure if he should intrude on the fiasco that was happening in front of him. He wanted to know of the "Business" that Cerise and Mei had mention but he didn't want to sit by and watch as two lovely ladies tore each other apart with vulgarity.

Mei Ming gave a small giggle, "Well, then, I believe I underestimated your level of sophistication!" she exclaimed, "You see, however..." she pulled Cerise down giving him a possessive kiss, "This man here belongs to me. I believe I'm allowed to interrupt when I see him participating in such concerning acts."