Das Totenlied: Kagami no Tsukimono [It Begins]

[NessySchu]

Jetta laughed at the girl's statement, pleased that Yuki seemed to like Finnick. The owl hooted softly and happily and rustled his tail feathers a little at the gentle touch of the younger girl's hand. Jetta was starting to feel protective of the younger girl already.

[Kinokokao]

(eh? Sorry, bad wording, I meant Loren was waiting for Jetta's response to Yuki's question about Finnick)

"Yes, good sir," called Loren, "do join us!" He beckoned to the man, catching a glance to the book's title as he did so. Although Loren's own reading tastes leaned more toward sensationalized travelogues and steamy pillow books, he could appreciate the odd scientific report or two.

He turned his attention to Yuki. "Yes, darling, I am a prince. Although only in name and not form, I suppose." He glowed at the compliment, smiling radiantly. "Ah, yes, thank you, my dear, that is quite kind of you. Are you far from home?" he asked kindly.

[Sampson]

Elleman looked up from his book. It seemed that someone had finally noticed him. Oh, well. He did tend to...blend in.

"I am Elleman Bentriall, a biologist. I'm here to study fauna native to the Dead Tower...oh, and I can play the violin, too. That...might come in handy." He suppressed a smirk as he said this. "And...who are you?" Of course, his hearing was good enough that he already knew everyone's names, but acting like a stalker tended to rub people the wrong way.

As he gazed at the people he had just introduced himself to, he took special notice of the girl's owl. "Excuse me, miss..." he started, his eyes wide, "Is that...is that a Bubo hypnosis?! Er...or 'Hypno-owl,' as it's commonly called. I've read so much about them, but never actually seen one..." The young man who had been so distant and reclusive a minute ago had suddenly become energetic at the sight of the animal.

[Drathi]

((I don't feel like editing my post. XD ))

Grey stopped and turned to face the one who had called out to him. He expressed no emotion as Ezek approached him. "Well, that's one person," he muttered. He acknowledged Ezek and continued to move. he was not one to waste time talking; he would talk when he had to, inside.

((Short post is short.,.. school's eating up a lot of time.))

[zamisk]

(okie, I'll roll with it~)

Ezek trudged along beside the person heading towards the tower. At his greeting, the person, who sounded male, muttered something. Ezek was unsure if he was welcome to join the stranger, but shrugged and continued on with him. It's not like he said he couldn't come. After a while of walking, Ezek could smell pine trees. We must be near a forest, he thought.

[FomeRubr555]

"Ah, umm, yes I'm f-from far to the east, across the distant mountains... Word of the Dead Tower reached us, and so the elders sent me on a...trial. I-If I can conquer it, I will inherit my father's position as head of the clan...at least, that's what they say..." A bit of uneasiness was in her heart, and possibly even evident in her voice. But fortunately there was another person present to change the subject.

"Iaiwara no Yukiko. Y-You may call me Yukiko, or Yuki... Pleased to meet you, B- I mean, Elleman..." Out of habit, she wanted to address him by his last name. But considering the mostly informal nature of this group, and the fact that nearly everyone else around seemed to prefer to be addressed as such, she didn't want to make things awkward. So, his first name seemed fitting, she just prayed he wouldn't lash at her for it.

[NessySchu]

"Jetta Brock," she introduced herself. "And I suppose he is. He can put people to sleep, but I didn't know there was a scientific term for that. His name is Finnick. You can pet him if you like, or even hold him for a minute," she offered, holding out her pet to the scientist.

[Sampson]

[Kinokokao]

"A journey to claim an inheritance, a quest to find a mother -- what beautiful motivations my companions have," Loren praised. "I offer my esteemed assistance to fulfill such noble endeavors." He bowed to the swordswoman with a cocky grin.

To the newest stranger, the musician, he introduced himself, "I am Prince Loren of Minskyava. What a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

[NessySchu]

"You're welcome," Jetta replied, accepting Finnick back. He hopped up her arm and perched on her shoulder, as usual. "So, now that we all know each other, what's the plan?"

[Sampson]

"Yes, pleased to meet you, too," said Elleman to the flamboyant Loren.

Looking at his new acquaintances, he turned to the dashing young prince. "So...any plans on actually going into the tower? I'm pretty eager to see what exciting beasts it holds...although I should probably be less excited. It would be nice to live to write down a report." He looked worried for a second, but the expression cleared after a moment, being replaced by his usual blank expression.

[Kinokokao]

"Well, darlings, I must admit I haven't a plan beyond exploring, battling, and, yes, quite agree; surviving. I'm sure it will be the utmost of thrilling," Loren said with a wicked grin.

"As our dear Yuki so kindly observed, it seems that people are gathering outside to contemplate the next step. Shall we join them?

[FomeRubr555]

"Y-Yes, though a battle plan would help...I th-think we should gather everyone together b-before we decide on that..." She took a few steps toward the door, intending to lead the way. As a front line warrior, she saw this as her duty, in a way.

"L-Let's go." She checked to make sure others were following before proceeding further. If they did, she would proceed along her speedy way to try to catch up to those already leaving. If not, she would wait for the others to be ready before departing. Above all else, she didn't think being alone was a good idea, so why not start practicing sticking together now?

[Sampson]

Looking around a few times hesitantly, Elleman walked toward Yukiko. The prospect of new knowledge was simply thrilling.

"We should be able to catch up with the ones that just left if we go now, now that I think about it. We should be able to survive if we do that." He spoke quickly, with little emotion showing in his voice. Looking at Jetta and Loren, he muttered, "I wonder if they'll come, too..."

[NessySchu]

"I'm in," Jetta said, moving to stand with Yukiko and Elleman. "The more, the merrier, right?" she smirked, adjusting the strap of her bag and grabbed her spear from where she'd leaned it up against the wall. Finnick fluttered about on her shoulder as if in agreement.