This is it!!

sara chidouin | kimi ga shine | affiliated

[samuraisleuth]

hollandayes replied to your post: my cast mates really out here stepping on my...

miss sara ��

DFGHJHGFFG 911 HELLO?? I’D LIKE TO REPORT MY OWN MURDER

[samuraisleuth]

my cast mates really out here stepping on my throat tonight...

[samuraisleuth]

{ ❈ } » — “I...it’s practically October already? When did that happen?                   I wonder if the bakeries here will start carrying pumpkin flavored sweets, too...”

[samuraisleuth]

{ ❈ } » — She had hurried out of the house, still pulling her shoe on with one hand while the other firmly clasped her shopping the list in the other. Eyes were glancing over it, making sure she hadn’t forgotten to write anything, and occasionally rolling when they came across Joe’s very obvious handwriting. His way of requesting certain items she wouldn’t purchase otherwise, it would seem.

                 One would think he would just ASK her. Alas, her best friend was more clever than she awarded him credit for at times. If he didn’t ask, she couldn’t say no. She’d let him revel in his victory for now, she was in enough of a hurry to get to the market as it was.

                 It’s only once she’s out the door and headed past the neighboring residences that Sara hesitates. Amethyst eyes are wide, staring as if she very well might be seeing a ghost right now. She blinks, yet the receding figure is still there. Moving further away from her, but very much still visible.

                 “Sou...?”

                 The name is barely a whisper from her lips, and before she has a chance to talk herself out of it, she’s running to catch up with him. Joe always did praise her for her agility.

                 “Sou!! I...is that really you??”

@souitbegins

[samuraisleuth]

pocketdogged‌:

  That’s almost the reaction he expects, but it still catches him off-guard to be brought to his feet. Joe makes a startled noise, stumbling when Sara begins to drag him away from the area while looking back towards his previous hiding spot on the wall.

  There’s a warm feeling in his chest with the thought of Sara speaking kindly of him to Ryoko at that moment. A thought passes onto the latter, Joe letting out a soft sigh at the thought of his actual girlfriend back home. If he was lucky, maybe speaking to a memory of her would lead his words to reach her–

  Ah, that’s too wishful. It’ll be fine; he can leave a message for Sara to deliver to her should they be separated again.

  “ H - Hey, hey! Sara, what’s gotten into ya?! Your grip’s all steely…! ” he complains, finally making a move to pull it out and rub at it with a slight pout. There’s another glance thrown back towards Sonobeno now fading into the distance before his attention’s back on Sara.

  “ Do you not want me hearin’ you getting all gushy about me? I doubt whatever you said was that embarrassing! ”

{ ❈ } » — She thinks she pulled him away soon enough. Or at least she hopes she did. Regardless, she doesn’t cease pulling him along until she’s confident that they’re out of earshot. Their being here makes absolutely no sense, there’s no way they SHOULD be here right now, but at least it’s landed them somewhere she knows the layout like the back of her hand.

                 “N-nothing has gotten into me!” Sara deflects, stubborn as ever when she finally relinquishing her hold on him. And judging by his response, she feels it safe enough to assume she got them away from there just in time. “You’re the one who was eavesdropping!”

                 A deep breath and adrenaline subsiding, she sighs, finally allowing her expression to soften. She knows he isn’t entirely to blame for this. Her own heart aches momentarily when she gives her a chance to properly process what they had stumbled across; Ryoko. That...that was really her and Ryoko. Sara remembered that conversation like it was yesterday, and what’s more, it made her realize just how long it’s been since she’d last seen her friend. And then her eyes drift to Joe.

                 How could she be angry with him for, no doubt, simply wanting to see his girlfriend again? Through her silence, she frowns. While she had her reasons for pulling him away so abruptly like she did, away from words that he had no business hearing, she owed him an apology.

                 Of course, he never did make that easy.

                 “Do you ever think before you speak, Joe?” she huffs, eyes averting to stare at the wall in a futile attempt to salvage her dignity. “Look...I’m sorry I snapped at you like that, it was uncalled for. But what do you care what we were talking about anyway? Not everything is meant for you to hear, you know.”

[samuraisleuth]

Joe... ‌:

@samuraisleuth, uh…

  This is certainly not the scene he expected to come across when searching for Sara. Sonobeno offers a wall for him to hide behind, having caught sight of Ryoko and (who he assumes) is the dream version of Sara talking. It’d be one thing if the conversation were about school work, but hearing his name dropped among it all is… 

  Embarrassing? Yeah.

  Joe slides down the wall, face in his hands. It’s pretty strange to hear his best friend and girlfriend talk about him so early on into knowing each other (or, well, not at all in the latter’s case), but there’s a bit of appreciation to it.

  … Wait, those are footsteps.

  He snaps to attention from his spot on the ground, opening his mouth to ready his own defense (which there isn’t much of) until he notices who it is.

  “ Sara…! I was lookin’ for you! ” he breathes, tensing up when the realization of Sara likely being the worst person to show up hits. “ … I promise I wasn’t eavesdropping too much– ”

{ ❈ } » — This certainly didn’t seem right. Weren’t they just back at the condo? Yet no matter how she looks at things, this is the school. HER school. Back home. The one which feels like such a distant memory now. Sonobeno. Her home away from home. But how...?

                 Nothing about this makes sense. Is she...home? But then what about the island? The Death Game? Joe? Oh god, Joe!! For a moment there’s panic in her heart. Panic at the possible reality that may await her in such a nostalgic place.

                 “Joe?! Joe, where are you...!!” Sara shouts, near frantic. But fortunately, it doesn’t last long. It’s but a moment before she spots the familiar mess of hair low to the ground while he...hides behind a wall? What in the world could that boy have possibly gotten himself into? Though she’s not sure she may even WANT to know, well, she’ll probably end up having to come to the rescue anyway.

                 “There you are! What are you doing over h--” she begins before words trail off at the sight. “...Wait a minute, that’s me. And Ryoko?”

                 Words can’t even begin to describe the whirlwind of emotions that swirl around her heart. This is much more than falling into one of her dreams, it’s as if she’s staring directly into the past.

                 “Sara, I’ve never heard you talk about a boy like this. Just who IS this guy?”

                 "It’s not a big deal, Ryoko! Joe and I have--”

                 “JOE? You’re on a first name basis with him and this is the first I’m hearing about it?”

                 “Can we please stop making a big deal about this already?”

                 ( Oh, she remembers this. )

                 That conversation. It’s from the day she first told her best friend about...the exact person who has no need to be hearing all of this. She snaps out of her awe when reality settles back in, enough to remind her that she has but a couple of minutes for them to get out of here before she can’t even face him after.

                 “Okay, time to go!” is abruptly stated, Sara wasting no time in grabbing the other’s wrist and tugging him to his feet. “You can explain yourself later, we’ve gotta go. Now.”

[samuraisleuth]

{ ❈ } » — In retrospect, there were probably several different, more efficient, ways that she could have gone about handling this. She wasn’t much for venturing into unfamiliar territory, let alone going it alone, but that seemed to be all this city had to offer; places new and unknown to her. But what was life without a little adventure, right?

                The answer? Far less confused and significantly less lost. In her defense, whose grand idea was it to design an island in the shape of a giant circle, anyway? And though she has the passing thought that she could always call Joe and ask for his help, it’s a mixture of her own stubbornness and pride that quickly discard the idea. Golden Ward may have been one of his usual haunts, but it was bad enough he still gave her grief over the traffic cone incident. The last thing she needed was to give him MORE embarrassing things to tell their friends about. Besides, she was perfectly capable all on her own! If this was where she would be living for the foreseeable future, she would have to adapt regardless. And finding her way to school seemed like the best place to start.

                ( ...Wait, hadn’t she passed that shop already? )

                “Shoot, this isn’t the right way...”

                Okay, maybe she really should stop and ask someone for directions. Perhaps one of the shopkeepers? There certainly appeared to be no shortage of them, and surely one of them would have to know how to guide her. It was the most logical option. However, Sara pauses in passing when she catches a glimpse of striking red and white, and for the briefest of moments, she’s reminded of another very colorful individual she once knew. She hesitates. But upon closer inspection he looks to be about her age as well, doesn’t he?

                “Excuse me!” She calls out before she can give herself the chance to second guess her decision. After all, it wouldn’t be the first time she elected to ignore the most reasonable choice. “You wouldn’t happen to know how I could get to Spirale University from here, would you?”

@prodigiousquirk liked for a starter!!

[samuraisleuth]

“ I’m sorry I let you down. ”

quotes i found on pinterest sentence starters pt. one || no longer accepting !

{ ❈ } » — “Joe…what are you saying…?”

                It felt as if the floor was threatening to fall out from beneath her, dragging her back into that pit of darkness she had already clawed her way out of. Back into a world that no longer had her best friend in it, where she felt scared and alone and unsure of if there even still existed a future for her; Because it certainly didn’t feel like it. Nobody stared directly into Hell and lived to tell the tale.

                This city had granted them a new beginning. A second chance, at that. And every time she closed her eyes, it came with the subconscious fear that when she opened them again, she would be back there. Without him. Forced to recall the part she played in the grand scheme of things, how she had been the one who failed him.

                So…what reason did he have to be apologizing?

                He wasn’t the one who had sentenced her to death. Not the one who, even now, continued to be plagued by nightmares of her blood splattered across his hands while Miley’s wicked laugh drowned out his screams.

                Joe Tazuna wasn’t a murderer.

                Sara wished she could say the same about herself.

                What made her any better than the ones responsible for sending them there? She had sealed his fate the moment she presented Kai with the rule book. And what’s more, she couldn’t bring herself to cast the vote to try and save his life. Denial was hardly an excuse when they both knew deep down what was to become of him. She knew the truth, she simply didn’t want to see it.

                 Because it would have made it impossible to vote with logic over emotion.

                 Because despite all her big talk and cool demeanor, she was a COWARD. A coward who couldn’t even help herself, let alone anyone else. Joe had been but the first of many.

                 Kai. Alice. Nao. Sou.

                 She had failed to save all of them, failed to forgive herself for being unable to do anything to save them. Yet her biggest failure, her biggest regret, was standing before her. Apologizing for letting HER down. What twisted sense of irony was that, anyway?

                  After a prolonged silence, Sara laughs. However, rather than light and full of joy, it’s pitiful and broken, and matches the smile she wears upon raising her head to face him. The very smile that never reaches her eyes.

                  “You could never let me down,” she says, plain and simple. Like it should be the most obvious thing in the world. “You’re my best friend.”

                  There’s more she could say, what feels like a infinite number of things she wants to tell him. But if the Death Game had taught her anything, it was that he had already suffered enough because of her. Her demons, her guilt. They were her burdens to bear. Not his.

                 ( Some things are simply better left unsaid… )

[blackcatrph]

☞☞ quotes i found on pinterest sentence starters pt. one ☜☜

“  i’ve polished this anger and now it’s a knife.  ” 

“  i’m fine, i’ve had worse.  ”

“  death too must be earned.  ”

“  how do you destroy a monster without becoming one ?  ”

“  am i a bad person ?  ”

“  family isn’t who you’re born with, it’s who you’d die for.  ” 

“  are you flirting or starting a fight ?  ”

“  i’ll survive, somehow i always do.  ”

“  um.. that’s my emotional support knife collection.  ”

“  tell me; would you kill to save a life ?  ”

“  i am someone who did not die when they should of.  ”

“  i’ve never been good at emotional stuff. except anger. i’m good at anger.  ”

“  you can’t protect everyone !  ”

“  i have to try.  ”

“  turn the pain into power.  ” 

“  what doesn’t kill me better run.  ”

“  are monster born or created ?  ”

“  chin up kid, they’d kill to see you fall.  ”

“  if he puts his hands on you, cut them off.  ”

“  i could keep you safe. they’re all afraid of me.  ”

“  don’t play games with me. don’t ever think you’re capable of that.  ”

“  the question isn’t who is going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me.  ”

“  something had made your eyes go cold.  ”

“  you haven’t even seen my bad side yet.  ”

“  everybody knows that i’m a mess.  ”

“  i’m sorry i let you down.  ”

“  well, if it isn’t the feeling i was trying to avoid.  ”

“  you are not your father.  ”

“  even on your bad days, be kind.  ”

“  you don’t want me and i need to accept that.  ”

“  stay gentle. everyone is at war.  ”

“  the risk i took was calculated. but clearly i am bad at maths.  ”

“  i wonder which will get you killed faster, your loyalty or your stubbornness ?  ”

“  always be a little kinder than necessary.  ”

“  kind words cost nothing.  ”

“  i am being perfectly fucking civil.  ”

“  we’ll never be those kids again.  ”

“  i’m the original family disappointment.  ”

“  if karma doesn’t hit you, i fucking will.  ”

“  if you can’t be happy, at least you can be drunk.  ”

“  you can talk to me, or not talk to me, but i’m here.  ”

“  guess you’ll just have to fight me.  ”

“  i never asked to be like this.  ”

“  wow.  you’re a dick.  ”

[samuraisleuth]

update

me: okay let’s get these replies going! laptop: hey watch this (dies)

aka hey guys, sorry about the Additional delay on those starters I promised. my operating system got corrupted and I couldn’t get my laptop to start up! but I just got it back today, it’s all fixed now and I’m just in the process of reinstalling my programs. so tomorrow we should be fully back on track and I’m really sorry for the wait!! thanks for your patience!

[samuraisleuth]

samuraisleuth‌:

well I accomplished what I set out to do today, so maybe it’s finally time to break myself in here with a little starter call?? I’ll cap it at 3 for now, so please drop a like if you’re interested! and if you’d prefer to plot something first, let me know!

I’ll be working on these later today, so stay tuned!!

[samuraisleuth]

Joe!!‌:

  He isn’t worried, what’re you talking about? The slightly panicked pacing about the room isn’t a symptom of concern, definitely not. Even as Joe fiddles with the cat keychain in his hand, he can’t help the strange bubbling of anxiety in his chest.

  ( Eventually, he settles enough to plop on the floor with his legs crossed and breathe. Sara will return shortly, so he can relax and it’ll be fine. )

  The door opening and Sara’s voice ringing out jolt him from staring mindlessly at the wall, Joe scrambling to get to his feet and nearly tripping while doing so. He pokes his head out to greet his friend, hoping the relief in his smile doesn’t come across too strong.

  “ Welcome back, Sa… ”

  Joe blinks and cants his head, eyeing the present.

  “ … Ra? What’s that ya got there? ”

{ ❈ } » — Relief swells in her chest when he all but greets her at the door. Thank goodness, she made in time. Leaning against the doorway for a brief moment to recompose herself and catch her breath, Sara offers a warm smile in return.

                “Did you miss me?” she teases, taking her shoes off before closing the door behind her. As she turns to face him again, a glimpse of his expression is caught and she follows his line of sight to the gift in her hand. Right. She...probably shouldn’t have held that out in the open, huh?

                ( Well, no sense chiding herself over it now. )

                “Oh, you mean this?” Sara feigns ignorance. She vaguely waves the package around in the air before stepping forward. The smile on her face only seems to brighten as she extends it towards him. “It’s for you, of course!”

                She waits until it’s in his hands before she takes a step back, hands clasping together behind her back.

                “I hope you didn’t think I would forget. It’s...sort of why I took so long, I’m sorry. I know it’s not much, but I noticed your old one broke, so...I hope it’s alright. And...”

                And she wishes it was more, considering she had thought they would never get to celebrate another birthday together again. Unfortunately, the island hadn’t left her with much time to find her bearings beforehand. But she would make it up to him later.

                “Happy Birthday, Joe!”

[samuraisleuth]

well I accomplished what I set out to do today, so maybe it’s finally time to break myself in here with a little starter call?? I’ll cap it at 3 for now, so please drop a like if you’re interested! and if you’d prefer to plot something first, let me know!

[samuraisleuth]

{ ❈ } » — A quick look at the time tells her that she’s running far later than intended. How could she have known just how truly massive the city was? And she’d long since lost track of how many stores she had been in and out of to find what she was looking for. Yet right when the situation had begun to seem hopeless, some merciful being decided to smile upon her. Hanging on the shelf, right before her eyes, she found it.

                 Now she simply has to make it back to her residence before he grows suspicious. Or worse, worried. She makes a silent prayer that the cat keychain left on her pillow was sufficient in striking down any of those concerns before they could form.

                 ( Surely even HE couldn’t have forgotten what day it was... )

                 Sara’s out of breath by the time she reaches the door, fumbling for her key with one hand while the other holds the colorfully wrapped package to her chest.

                 “J-Joe...!” she calls out the moment the lock gives way, letting herself in. “Sorry, I had to run out to pick something up. Are you still here?”

happy birthday, @pocketdogged!!

[samuraisleuth]

Joe‌!!:

  There’s plenty that he wants to say to her, so many words that caught in his throat minutes before his life was slowly drained right before his eyes. Joe thinks he’d choke on them if not for quietly pushing them out in the form of catching his breath after all the crying, letting Sara speak first.

  ( Not that he remembers telling her not to cry, but he definitely agrees with the message. )

  Her concerns on this reality are… understandable, even if the thought sends a considerable shock of cold through him. To shut his eyes and never wake up again for a second time is horrific, but what can Joe say? He shouldn’t be alive, so to know he has a pulse and his blood back in his body again is…

  ( … Focusing on the negative can’t be healthy. )

  “ I’m not gonna leave ya again that easily! Sorry to say, but…! ” he begins, pulling up the brightest smile. “ … you’re stuck with me again, Sara! ”

{ ❈ } » — She had always pushed herself to prioritize logic over emotion. To act on what was in her heart rather than what was most sensible was reckless, led to mistakes. Regrets. But her time in the Death Game up until now had also forced her to see that there would always be regrets. There was never a correct choice when gambling with others’ lives, there was only trying to convince yourself there was.

                 So when every rational part of her being screams that she shouldn’t trust what’s in front of her, it could be yet another one of their traps, her heart reminds her that Joe’s worth the risk. She can be selfish this once, can’t she?

                 ( After all, hadn’t she already been prepared to offer her life in exchange for his...? )

                 For the first time since their shared nightmare began, Sara feels light; as if the weight of the world has been lifted off her shoulders. Even should the alleviation be but temporary. She’ll take whatever she can get.

                 “You dummy...” she says, head raising to face him. Joe’s smile is so bright, it almost hurts her eyes. She can only compare it to finally seeing the sun again after spending days trapped in the darkness. And though she mirrors it with her own soft trace of a smile, there’s no stopping the silent tears. “I was never STUCK with you, don’t talk like that. You’re my best friend, Joe. And not having you there...was a feeling I never want to experience again.”

                 Sara pauses a beat, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand before offering a gentle laugh.

                 “...Just don’t think this means I’m going to let you copy my homework from now on.”

[samuraisleuth]

» sara chidouin | your turn to die

sweet sixteen, babey! second year student at sonobeno high school!

a well disciplined student who takes her studies seriously. will probably help you study if you ask.

do not ask to just copy her homework, she will tell you to PERISH.

has often been compared to a samurai for her strong, cool demeanor.

don’t let that fool you though, she’s actually very unsure of herself and can be a bit of a Dweeb™ once you get to know her.

lowkey cat lover

if she’s harsh with you, it’s only because she cares. or you’re doing something wrong...

somehow voted leader of the Worst group project EVER!!

can her friends stop dying please??

she really does want to trust and believe in others, however her full trust can take a bit of work to gain. at heart, she’s an extremely loyal friend who would do anything for them.

a package deal with @pocketdogged. DO NOT SEPARATE THEM.

there will be spoilers abound, you have been warned!

[samuraisleuth]

pocketdogged‌:

  If he calls the sound of his name nostalgic, he’ll feel all too accepting of the results of this past… this past…?

  ( How long has he been dead? )

  Joe swallows down the anxiety that claws the inside of his throat to focus back on the girl currently making it hard to breathe, the one who’s hand hovers as if reaching further will make him vanish. Inhaling shakily, he shifts as much as he can to rest part of his head in her palm. There’s warmth and Joe can’t help the hiccup that comes out. 

  “ It’s me, it’s… really me…! ” he chokes out, turning his head more to hide his face. It’s embarrassing how hard he’s crying already, but it isn’t as if Sara hasn’t seen him in a significantly worse state before. 

  ( Shit, she’s looking misty-eyed too… )

  A shaky laugh once more, moving to make an attempt to wipe at the tears in Sara’s eyes. “ C - C’mon, we can’t both start crying now. You’re the cool and collected one, Sara…! ”

{ ❈ } » — Hallucinations. Dolls. Artificial intelligence. It feels like she’s seen every mirror image of him up until this point, but none could compare the genuine article. The one she never thought she would be able to see again, because how could she? He...he was dead. She watched him die!!

                 Yet the warmth of his face pressing against her hand is undeniably real, and effectively breaks the last thread keeping her together. Sara’s trembling as she throws her arms around him.

                 “I missed you so much...!” she cries out, fingers tightly clutching his blazer. “I never thought I would see you again!!”

                 She doesn’t need to look up to know that he’s crying, she can hear it in his voice and it makes her want to hold onto him that much harder. What she doesn’t notice is the tears that have started to trail down her own face until he draws attention to them. And then it’s her turn to laugh through the tears, shaking her head.

                 “I’m sorry, I told you I wasn’t going to cry anymore. But...this feels like a dream. This is too good to be true, isn’t it? I’m afraid one of the others is going to wake me up and I’ll lose you again.”