[Matsu]

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[attr="class","likedotitle2"]Halloween is for Heroes!

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[attr="class","likedosub"] 7:30 pm, Saturday, UAU Cafeteria

With the explicit permission of the school's principal, Starling Soul had spent most of the holidays trying to lift the spirits of the Pro Heroes and UAU faculty who had taken part in Elementals, MAWS, and Dream World. It was taxing on students but no one stopped to consider how much it could/would wear down the heroes of Japan. So, when she approached the school's principal, they came up with the idea of hosting a fully catered Halloween party with an open bar.

There were plenty of active Pro Heroes, so there wasn't as much concern about bringing this many people into one place as Starling Soul's own agency was fully mobilized for the night, aside from her. Due to her atypical mutation, she couldn't wear a costume, but when she sent out invitations, she made her add COSTUMES ARE MANDATORY. Hopefully, some levity would let the Pros and Staff unwind.


She would greet everyone once she had a sufficient headcount and floated upwards, projecting her voice to the whole arena: "Welcome, my fellow Pros and Faculty alike. We have all persevered through crisis after crisis for the last year, and we'd like to thank you for all your hard work. Please accept this party as a chance to unwind and be merry. You're all off duty for tonight." with that, she would descend back down to the floor, and music would play, indicating the start of the night.

PHARAOH LEAP.

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[lonewolf]

Mark couldn't help but feel like this party was a trap, but it wouldn't be the first time he felt that way.

He didn't need to do much to get dressed up, and his getup would no doubt frustrate a few people. While it wasn't a big habit, he did have a cowboy hat; it was just this particular party he threw on a cheap holster, shoved a toy pop gun in there, found a big buckle and some snazzy boots, and called it a day.

He had, mostly, gotten over what happened with Dreamworld. The question still stuck with him, but at least he was taking a little better care of himself. That said, he really needed a beer. Setting his hat on the counter, he got himself a bottle and decided to take the night to relax. Relaxing, and not talking with anyone. The latter he didn't think he'd get out of, but if he could avoid talking with Penny, or even Stellar, he could be golden.

[Penny ✾]

A Halloween party? Really?

They clearly had no idea who they were inviting. Sure, it was last minute but Penny was going to be the hottest, long-legged peacock that ever strutted into that damn hall of theirs. A few quick stops at a whatever-the-heck costume store and she’d be on her way. Unfortunately, they didn’t have a peacock. Or any birds for that matter. What was left in stock was a lumpy, red frog.

Penny left. Store after store she couldn’t find anything else in stock. Just a lumpy, red frog. The party demanded costumes, too…

“Fine,” She slams down her card and pays for the frumpy costume. “I’ll teach everyone what it means to have frog legs.”

She walks in, face redder than the costume, only to be relieved by a familiar, ugly son-of-a-gun. Thank god. Pulling up next to Marcus Brownpants, she stifled an audacious laugh.

“You went from Lonely Bitch to Gay Cowboy?” The laugh escaped her malicious smirk. Not that she was trying too hard. “What makes it worse is you’ve worn this before, haven’t you?”

---

lonewolf

[Stellar]

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KIMI NO TAION

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THE WHOLE WORLD IS PAINTED OVER ONCE AGAIN

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[attr="class","kiminoleft"] [attr="class","kiminoimg"] [attr="class","kiminolyric"] YOUR WARMTH [attr="class","kiminolyric2"] flowers blossom, and then the moon grows even when the whole world is painted over once again. there was warmth that had told me i was in your hold, but someday, i'll forget and it will be cold - that's all that it was. [attr="class","kiminothing"] Penny ✾,lonewolf,

[attr="class","kiminoright"] Really?? A Halloween party!?[break][break] When she finally got the news through Maxima, she was ecstatic to celebrate a familiar holiday. Japan's customs were new to her and while she enjoyed all of them Halloween was always a big one at home. Her dad would go all out, and as a kid, she would trick or treat as long as she could. She couldn't exactly trick or treat now without judgment but Halloween parties were the next best thing![break][break] Perhaps it was her lucky day as the first costume shop she entered had exactly what she was looking for - a hula girl outfit! In her size too. She was a bit worried about this being cultural appropriation. Still, the store owner mentioned that proceeds from this costume went to a charity to support the Hawaiian people, so Stellar gave extra. Helping people who are less fortunate while also getting what she wanted to put a smile on her face, just like everything else![break][break] Showing up the party, she'd greet a few familiar faces with a hearty "Aloha!" and then moved her way towards the open bar, finding a space next to two people. "Hi! Can I get a bellini please and thank you!" Her eyes caught a familiar face. "Oh, hi, Mark!" She would look past him at the much, much taller woman in the frog costume. "Who's your friend? I like your costume!" she'd raise her voice slightly so Penny could hear her clearly over the music and reach past Mark extend a friendly handshake. "I'm Stellar! It's nice to meet you!"[break][break]

PHARAOH LEAP CREATES

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[lonewolf]

This was a special kind of hell. The one that God specifically built for a certain kind of sinner. The only problem was, he wasn't sure what exactly he had done to end up in a place like this. He'd go to a priest, but he wasn't Catholic nor did he know where a priest would be. "I'm not nearly drunk enough for this," he mutters.

"Stellar," he says, not quite sure what her real name was. Was that her name? It was weird if it was. "This here's my girlfriend, Penny. We're on a break, though. Apparently winning a bet fair and square put me in the dog house." He gave Stellar an apologetic smile, hoping to kill two birds with one stone: make it seem like he and Penny were meeting up to try and work something out, and make Penny angry enough to make her storm off. Unfortunately, when he was in similar positions with women in the past all he had to do was pretend to be on both of their sides to earn him the cold shoulder. Now that he was trying to get some alone time he wasn't sure how well his tactic would work.

Penny ✾, Stellar,

[Kazashi McCoy]

Kazashi was busy catching up with one of her colleagues she had fought beside during the Dream World incident. They had both been awake and fought for order and control over Tokyo, but they hadn't had any time to catch up and talk about the little things. Like family, vacation plans and all that other stuff! When Starling Soul gave the welcome speech they both quieted down and listened to her. Once her speech was over they finished their conversation and once more she found herself all alone at the party.

Well, for a few seconds until she noticed people she recognized.

Grinning, she used her quirk to turn into a glass slipper and skipped on over to the others.

''Ya made it ta the ball just like me Ah see!'' The slipper said to the three gathered by the open bar, before Kazashi undid her transformation and turned back into herself. Except she didn't always wear such a fancy and shiny dress. ''Ah'm Apparel, but ya can call me Kazashi because Ah'm not workin' right now! Yer all lookin' amazin'! Hula, frog an' cowboy, Ah love the variety!'' She looked past the three, catching the attention of the bartender with a small wave. ''A regular soda for me, no alcohol!'' She turned back to the group, smiling, her fangs on full display. ''So what're we talkin' about?''

Stellar
lonewolf
Penny ✾

[Shirayuki Mai]

The Maimmy raised her glass at Starling Soul's words, both eager to unwind and anxious to leave her agency unattended for the night. Which, she supposed, proved the necessity of this party. Taking in a deep breath she swirled the champagne in her mouth to let it seep into her taste buds, even going so far as to close her eyes -the bandages on her face were see through of course, Mai would never risk being caught off guard even off duty- to enjoy it in full. For just a moment all felt right. Cheery chatter, friendly faces and not a care in the world. Even the annoyingly familiar sight of Mark and Penny causing a commotion didn't tick her off. Well, not as much as it usually did.

The fact that Penny had such a cute costume certainly helped. Mai was tempted to ask where she'd gotten it but something told her doing do would be a bad idea. Her eyes widened even further when Kazashi showed herself. Before Mai knew it her feet had carried her to the group.

"Kaz! I love your outfit!" Mai said cheerily and honestly, giving an appreciative nod to Penny as well and a genial one to Mark. "I don't think we've met. I'm Yuki Onna but you can call my Mai," she continued while turning to Stellar and extending her hand just like the other Pro had done moments before.

---

Tags: Kazashi McCoy,lonewolf,Stellar,Penny ✾

[Ryota Hada]

Ryota would be whistling his praises to Starling Soul's speech if his mask wasn't in the way. Because she was right; the city had been through a lot of strife lately and they deserved a break. And as much as he could sense that others thought they were never truly safe - and he understood that sentiment deeply - he knew that being on guard at all times would weather down even the hardiest of heroes. So the party was a welcome respite.

Granted, perhaps he was still on guard himself. His machete that his costume came with may be made of plastic, but a word was all it needed to inherit its sharp edge.

In any case, the masked man was walking around the cafeteria, whiskey in hand as he greeted the other heroes. All of them so far questioned the straw the drink came with. When he poked it through one of the holes in his mask to demonstrate why, he was met with faces of disgust. Bah! They just didn't understand the convenience.

He eventually made his way to another group - and some of his coworkers were in there. He couldn't help but snort at the frog outfit but he got himself together by the time he was close to them. "Penny! Stellar! It's so good to see you- I hope you're jumping in excitement at this luau!" His voice may be carrying a bit too much mirth.

The rest of the group would not be unscathed. He smiled underneath his mask as he faced Kazashi and Mai and saluted with his knife. "I'm Vox! Ryota outside of the heroics- don't get too wrapped in the festivities, you wouldn't want to stay out too late!"

And then there was the cowboy. He placed a hand on the man's shoulder. "And I can't believe you went full American for this occasion Mark! Or should I call you sheriff?" He sipped through his straw, but eventually his voice fell to a whisper. "Seriously though, you alright?" Compared to the rest of the group, Mark didn't seem all too keen on being here.

lonewolf,Penny ✾,Stellar,Kazashi McCoy,Shirayuki Mai

[Kazashi McCoy]

''Mai!'' She beamed, spinning around to face her. ''Ya look like ya walked right out of a horror movie! Hella stunnin'!'' She would try to pull her into a quick hug. Her and Mai usually saw each other at work so it was nice to have this free time to goof off together too. It hadn't dawned on her until just then, but ever since the twins were born her social life had been hella dead. Such was the life of a young, introverted mother.

''Speakin' of horror!'' She smiled back at Ryota, giving him a playful salute in turn. ''Apparel, but ya can call me Kazashi, nice ta meet ya! An' don't ya worry about me!'' She waved her hand casually. ''Ah've got the kids waitin' for me at home so Ah won't be stayin' out too long.'' She trusted Chuck to look after them with her heart and soul but she couldn't help but worry. As much as she appreciated the night out it also felt wrong to be out here without a baby alarm.

''That's me!'' She made her way over to the bartender and accepted her soda, taking a small sip before having a seat. ''Full-on American!'' She parroted Ryota, pointing a finger gun at Mark. ''Nice two meetchu!'' She said in English with a big grin, putting her lack of language skills on full display.

Ryota Hada, Shirayuki Mai, lonewolf, Stellar, Penny ✾

[Penny ✾]

Great.

Not only am I stuck with a wannabe cowherder, I’ve found myself in the company of a heifer! The spitting image of the broad on Rav’s arm. The night I caught him... Ugh. It comes flooding back and the only way to stop the tears is by curling my hands into a fist and socking her in the goddamn mouth—

“EW, YUCK!” Lonewolf snapped me out of it. If there was one thing I could count on him for, it was being a repulsive loser that disgusted more than Rav did. He broke my trust, my ego, my heart… but Ponyboy breaks my goddamn patience with how irritating he is. “We are not—”

Jesus Christ. Can I finish a thought around here? Another dumb broad all dolled up. Wait ‘til she’s thirty. Her man will cheat on her, too. And apparently, everyone was oh-so-interested in this blonde bimbo… I couldn’t roll my eyes harder without them popping out of my head. Bet your ass I tried though.

Then the fuckin’ tryhard. That guy Ryota was such a fuckin’ loser. Got on my nerves with the way he enjoyed life. Did you know when was alone (or thought he was alone) he not only spoke to himself, but added sound effects to his mundane actions? Like, yeah, he’s a hero… but you’re not in a comic book, honey.

Still, better than Lonewolf. And to drive the point home… and, more importantly, show all these girlies what long legs could do for a woman.

“Wow, big boy.” I lean over so we’re at eye level. Short bastard. “Scared the pants right off me…” He’s gonna be wrapped around my finger like the pathetic, sad sack he was. No way this 5/10 ever had a certified 11 give him any play. “Maybe I can return the favor? ;)”

---

lonewolf Stellar Kazashi McCoy
Shirayuki Mai Ryota Hada

[lonewolf]

Peter, Paul, and Mary, how in the world did he become a magnet to all these people? At the very least Mai and Kaz could talk amongst themselves as that conversation didn't involve him too intently, but Ryota and company? Yeah...yeah he was stuck. The fake smile he gave Ryota was enough to convey that. "That. Is not how you drink Jim Bean," Mark says, making an assumption on the brand of the bottle he was holding. "How 'bout we trade? I feel like I need something a little heavier with one of your associates here," he says, indicating Penny. The flirting she was doing was not lost on him, and he decided to really throw a wrench into her plans. "I know it's none of my business, but I had a few ideas for a drive you can do. How 'bout we walk and talk?"

He stood up, getting right in between Penny and Ryota as well as flashing a wink at Stellar. "Won't be more than ten minutes, promise."

Penny ✾, Stellar, Ryota Hada,

[Ryota Hada]

Ryota smiled underneath the mask at the princess' greeting. "A pleasure to meet you Kazashi! And ooh, kids? Forget what I said then, stay out as long as you need! You deserve a break from looking after them every once in a while." He had only ever played babysitter but he knew how taxing a mother's job could be. Add heroism to the mix and he'd be surprised if she ever slept.

He then turned his attention to Penny, brows raised at her words. He thought she didn't like him - making sound effects adds fun to the workplace you know - but she carried a much different energy here. Her remark made him let out a laugh. "I'd like to see you try with that adorable costume!" the man fired back easily. He patted her head, right on one of the lumps, for good measure. It was a good thing she made it easy to reach with her crouching.

Said patting would stop abruptly when Mark stepped between them, causing Ryota to pout. "Oh come now, don't knock it 'til you try it! I can't remove my mask so I have to drink this somehow- but trade?" He looked between their drinks, then at Penny who was now behind the cowboy. A nod of understanding from him then. "Sure, what brand is it? I can't read well with this thing on." He took the straw from his whiskey and popped it in the beer bottle before switching their drinks all the same.

"And drive? Mark, this is a party! You should be enjoying yourself, not bring up ideas for work!" They've never even talked about this sort of thing now that he thought about it. Another glance at the others and- ah. Right. The masked man grabbed Mark's arm. "Actually, the sooner we get this resolved, the sooner you could get to line dancing or whatever cowboys do."

He was pulling him then, away from the group. But not before turning his head to address them. "Ladies, I'll rejoin you later!"

lonewolf,Penny ✾,Stellar,Kazashi McCoy,Shirayuki Mai

[Stellar]

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KIMI NO TAION

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THE WHOLE WORLD IS PAINTED OVER ONCE AGAIN

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[attr="class","kiminoleft"] [attr="class","kiminoimg"] [attr="class","kiminolyric"] YOUR WARMTH [attr="class","kiminolyric2"] flowers blossom, and then the moon grows even when the whole world is painted over once again. there was warmth that had told me i was in your hold, but someday, i'll forget and it will be cold - that's all that it was. [attr="class","kiminothing"] @pharaohleap

[attr="class","kiminoright"] Stellar would clap excitedly as she watched Kazashi turn from shoe into princess. Super fun! "That's SUCH a cool party trick!" She would shake Kazashi's one hand with both. "An amazing costume too! I love the old Cinderella movies!" Kazashi's costume entirely enamored her until Mai arrived, and she nearly squealed, "Hi, Mai! It's so great to meet you. I'm Stellar, and that's such a cute costume!" She would have loved to give Mai and Kazashi a hug instead of a handshake but personal space was indeed a thing. [break][break] With her coworker showing up, she nearly skipped over and gave him a big hug. "So scary, Ryota!" It then dawned on her that she didn't formally introduce herself. "Oh! I work at Maxima too! That's how I know Ryota." She wasn't aware that the frog "princess" was another coworker of hers as she hadn't been at Maxima for too long.[break][break] She would break away before Penny made her move, paying her no mind since it wasn't her business who she was involved with. Maybe her and Mark had an open relationship? Love was love after all! Looking around she'd speak to the group still standing there "Anyone seen Iphigenia yet? She said she would be here and I'm dying to see her! She helped me get to Japan in the first place!"[break][break]

PHARAOH LEAP CREATES

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[Kazashi McCoy]

''Ya think?! It's just my quirk nothin' special! Did ya make yer costume yerself or buy it somewhere? Hula is such a good idea!'' She couldn't help but gush at Stellar's costume, matching her enthusiasm completely. She would have hugged her then and there if she knew whether she would be comfortable with it or not.

''Talkin' business at a party? Ah've got ta admire yer work ethic, but don't work yerself too hard.'' She giggled, just as clueless about Penny and Lone Wolf as Stellar was. ''Thank ya, thank ya, but Ah'd feel bad leavin' my husband all alone with 'em for too long. They're young so they can be a handful.'' She smiled at Ryota, recognizing his costume from one of those scary movies her and Chuck had watched together many Halloweens ago. ''What a lively bunch.'' She grinned, waving at Ryota as he pulled Mark away for another conversation. ''What's it like workin' at Maxima? Ah hear good things about ya but Ah've been out of the hero game for a little while.'' She looked at Stellar expectantly. She had only done some emergency work during the Tokyo Bay MAWS attacks and Dream World incident, but that didn't mean she didn't follow hero news.

''Iphigenia? Ya mean Recall, Iphigenia? Ah haven't seen her, but she would be in costume like the rest of us, right?'' She looked around as she took a sip of her soda. ''She helped ya out? She helped me a lot durin' my own hero student days too.'' Back then her quirk was still shrouded in mystery, but she understood herself a lot better today thanks to Iphigenia. ''Ya seen her today, Mai?'' She looked at the Maimmy before turning her attention back to Penny, feeling a little self-conscious that they were just talking and she still didn't know who she was. ''Ah don't think Ah caught yer name, which agency are ya with?'' She smiled and extended a hand towards Penny.

Stellar, Ryota Hada, lonewolf, Penny ✾, Shirayuki Mai

[Shirayuki Mai]

"Right back at you," Mai responded to Kazashi with a hug. "Ah, not horror of course, I mean. Nevermind. You look great." With eyes darting around for anything to distract from her slip-up she latched onto Vox's greeting. "A pleasure to meet you, Ryota. I shall hold your advice to heart." Mai had heard of Vox before and vaguely recalled seeing him as a first year before she'd graduated but she hadn't had the opportunity to meet him yet as a Pro Hero. With some luck this event could serve to foster connections now that so many of her colleagues were present. With a professional nod she shook Stellar's hand as well.

"Thank you. Yours is wonderful as well. Is it Okinawan?"  She asked with a friendly smile that was somewhat strained. Cute? That hadn't been what she was going for. Was Stellar a kindred spirit or someone making a jab at her height and hiding it behind a bright demeanor? She'd reserve judgement for now.

"Oh, say hi to Zenji and Yuzuki for me when you do!" Mai responded to Kazashi. It'd been a while since she'd seen them and Mai couldn't help but wonder how they were. Kids grew so fast at that age. 

Her wholesome reminiscence was interrupted when her eyebrow twitched at Penny's increasingly vulgar way of trying to draw attention to herself. Catching herself right before she was about to speak up Mai took a deep breath and set the matter aside. At least she attempted to. A snort escaped her at Ryota's reply, one she immediately sought to stifle by coughing over it. Pretending she'd choked on her drink she coughed a few more times while turning away to hide her smile, shoulders shaking with barely suppressed laughter all the while. Guilt hit immediately after and prompted her to act as normal as possible.

Oh kami, how did she normally stand? Was she standing too straight right now? Were her shoulders normally this squared or slightly more relaxed? Did her face look stiff because she was paying too much attention to her body language? Mai's cheeks flushed in embarrassment before she managed to channel her quirk through them to rid them of the heat.

"Ah, no. I haven't really talked with Recall since the wildlife incidents at the bay. Work has been busy recently and I'm ashamed to admit socializing has fallen a bit by the wayside," Mai confessed with a frown and a penitent expression. Finding a balance in between dealing with the increasing amounts of trouble Tokyo faced and maintaining her personal life had gotten increasingly difficult as of late. In truth Mai was suspicious of the convenient timing of today's double booking. It rarely happened that her patrol route happened to overlap fully with someone else's. She had some suspicions that one of her agency members had set things up this way intentionally. If that proved to be true it would certainly be problematic, for surely if even her fellows saw her work ethic as such a problem that they'd resort to deceit and trickery to get her to take a few hours off it was a personal flaw that needed addressing.

"Please forgive me for mentioning work at the party," Mai added with a slight head bow, ashamed that she was failing to follow Kazashi's advice moments after it'd been given to someone else. Had that made her look arrogant? She'd need to figure out if she needed to apologize after the party. Mai would do so now but she didn't want to ruin the mood, better to save that for later. "How have all of you been?"

---

Tags: Kazashi McCoy,Stellar,Ryota Hada,lonewolf,Penny ✾