The Boy Who Blocked His Own Shot

Wᴇssᴏɴ | Lᴇᴠᴇʟ 5 | Exᴘ. 2,100 Lᴇᴏ Pᴀʀʀɪsʜ | 20 ʏʀs

[bittenvenom]

When everything quiets down like this, I know something’s about to go down.  The anticipation just doesn’t feel right.

[wessonnaxis]

It's the calm before the storm, like when you hold in all your gas before letting rip a really loud fart.

[levixculus]

hush little baby - levi, wes; quest.

[levixculus]

“Her,” Levi corrected Wesson, uncaring if the other boy even heard him or not.

Rosa was an NPC, Levi knew that.  Baby Rosa was an artificially generated, in-game character and that’s all she would ever be;  another pixelated creation prompted to help them earn points and get to higher level.  That’s what NPCs were for - Levi was aware, he understood that.  Still, regardless of her artificial life-span, Rosa was a baby.  Babies were innocent;  Rosa was even more innocent, just a creation on the whim of someone who thought it’d be fun to leave a baby alone.

Levi didn’t say much as Wes’ adventure sing-a-long began.  The lyrics were stupid, but Wes had a nice voice.  Apparently, baby Rosa thought the same thing as she curled in Levi’s arms, a peaceful smile played on her lips as she did.  And then Wes asked a very good question.  One that Levi didn’t get a chance to ponder - between finding an abandoned baby and finding a partner for this quest, Levi didn’t exactly have the time to sit back and play curiosity toward anything else.  It was a good question and for now, it’ll remain a question.  His attention turned to something else that came from Wes’ mouth.

"You’re not a fuck-up," Levi said, seriousness easily detected in the tone of his voice.  He nodded over at Wes, "I don’t think you are."

Levi considered himself a good judge of character.  He was a writer by trade and an interview (part-time) by profession;  he could read people and the characters they were pretty well.  And Wesson?  Wesson was no fuck-up.  Not by Levi’s standards.  Sure, Wesson was crude and teetering on annoying, but fuck-up?  No.  Not the least bit.  He was, after all, kind enough to go on this quest with Levi;   a dumb escort quest, but still a quest that could risk both their lives.

Wes was an entertaining partner to go through this with.  Very entertaining.

"Thanks for the warning, Jack,” Levi said between balancing his footing.  He probably would have had an easier time with balance, but a baby in his arms was added weight.  Not that Rosa was very heavy, but traveling through a forest with wispy vines and thick roots and dirt that shifted when weight was put on it?  Any added weight was going to make things harder. 

"Hm?  What are y—," Levi’s sentence ended when he caught a glimpse of what silenced Wes just a few moments ago.  An audible groan came from Levi.  There was a stupid, glimmer of hope that the bats wouldn’t harm them but it was futile.  Levi reached for the hilt of his stick, gripping it with anticipation - how was he going to fight and hold a baby at the same time?  What a challenge.

"Either we run or we fight, Wes," Levi said, uncertainty clear in his voice.  The forest held plenty of places for cover but at the speed the bats were heading toward them, hiding might not be an option.  He readied his weapon, preparing himself to fight as the bats came. 

Baby Rosa, of course, chose this as the best time to cry.

"It’s okay, Rosa," Levi said, trying to calm the baby down.  He held her tightly with his left arm, resting her against himself and shielding her from the incoming bats.  "We’ll protect you, don’t you worry."

[wessonnaxis]

Wes wasn't blushing, he really wasn't. Wesson didn't blush, his body wasn't physically capable of blushing whatsoever. It just happened to be unnaturally hot in Naxis that day, and it just so happened to correspond with Levi's statement. But getting flustered? Not Wesson. He'd never. Especially not from some generic comment from a neanderthal, no matter how well intentioned.

The worst thing was, Levi was actually trying to be nice, but it just pissed Wesson off. There was a part of Wes, the stubbornly obnoxious part of him that refused to give in, that was probably the only aspect of his personality that single-handedly got him through life. It was hard to think you weren't a fuck up when everyone and everything in your daily life constantly reminded you that you weren't worth much, but in what might have deterred other people just made Wesson want to succeed just to spite them. And maybe he wasn't there yet, but one day, he would. He was sure of it. Fuck up or not.

"You don't know me enough to make that observation," he replied, his tone uncharacteristically even.

Luckily, or unluckily, the subject was going to be dropped, or at least, forgotten temporarily considering the nature of their situation. The bats came in hoards, wings flapping noisily among their high pitched cries. Run or fight. It wasn't much option for much else. Running seemed futile, though; there were so many of them, and it would be impossible to outrun them all. And fighting, again, wasn't an option; between the two of them under level 100 and having a baby with them, they wouldn't stand a chance against that many.

"Neither," Wes announced. Pushing himself low against the three, Wes looked around. There had to be, there had got to be a place where they could-

"Here," he hissed, the urgency in his tone causing his voice to shake slightly. Not waiting for Levi's reply, Wes carefully but forcefully dragged the larger man over to a thicker underbrush, almost a canopy with how closely intertwined the trees where. Ducking down, Wes pushed Levi and Rosa against the trunk, pressing himself close as possible.

"We might be able to avoid most of them," he mouthed, barely audible, "but only if we're really quiet."

That, of course, was easier said than done when one had a crying infant in their party with them. Wes' back, tense and warm, felt the cloth of his tunic begin to stick with him due to sweat. They couldn't avoid the bats, not for long, if Rosa continued to cry. They'd be screwed, with nowhere to run.

"Heyyy, hey baby," Wes cooed, surprising himself with the gentleness of his tone, "Who's a good baby? Rosa's a good baby, huh?" Outside, the screeches grew louder. Wes forced himself to keep his composure, and swallowed hard.

"Yeah, it's been a long day, huh Rosa?" Wes extended a free hand, gently stroking her cheek with a finger, "I know, I'm tired too. But it's okay. We're gonna get you back to your parents. Me and Levi, we're a good team. There's no reason to cry, Rosa."

Wes never was good with kids. No- he never had an opportunity to be good with kids. Living in a tiny town with just his dad and his coworkers for company didn't give him much exposure to interacting with children. Not that he ever complained; hanging out with a bunch of babies wasn't exactly his idea of a good time. So Wes always assumed he'd just be really bad with kids, and they wouldn't like him by default. But to his surprise, Rosa seemed to calm down considerably. Her cries quieted to heaves and quiet sniffles, and while she was still upset, she was definitely not crying. 

Suddenly, Wes was hyper aware of how close he was to Levi. Other than Rosa in between them, the two were essentially pressed up against each other. It was to protect Rosa, obviously. It was definitely about Rosa. Wes took a step backwards, exhaling slowly. While the cries of the hoard died down, Wes knew there was bound to be a few stragglers left, but if his theory was right, it'd only be a handful, and between the two of them, it was far more manageable.

"Stay behind me," Wes instructed to Levi, brandishing his weapon, "I'll try to get most of them."

[levixculus]

hush little baby - levi, wes; quest.

[levixculus]

Carrying a baby was tiring.  Granted, the baby didn’t weigh much but having his arm positioned like that was not something that Levi was accustomed to.  He gingerly shifted baby Rosa from his right arm and over to his left one.  Luckily, she didn’t mind and just giggled as he did so.

"You should hold our Rosa,” Levi suggested to Wesson.  He assumed that was a suggestion that would remain just that:  a suggestion.  Judging from Wesson’s recent actions and dialogue, Levi could safely assume that he was going to hold the child for the majority of this quest.  It was fine with him.  Babies were cute.  Just like the one who was stabbing a tree a few feet ahead of him.  Cute, but their actions could be strange.

M-Preg?  Levi laughed at the mention of it.  Wesson was definitely something different, alright.  The younger boy definitely amused him.  He shook his head at him, grinning at him while he did.  Levi liked people, especially people who were interesting.  Wesson was interesting;  he was impulsive, brash and unafraid to do or say whatever came at the top of his head.

Apparently, bats were not popular in Naxis.  At all.

"Okay, through the forest we go," Levi said, a tone of merriment in his voice.  As dangerous as the forests of Naxis could be, the adventurer’s spirit in him could not be pushed aside.  Not even while baby Rosa lay happily in his arms.  He stepped forward and headed toward the forest.  With baby Rosa in his left arm, Levi took his weapon in his right hand.  Caution was to be had when entering the forests.  All sides were open, any mistake would be a costly one.

"Wes," Levi called out to the other boy, "I think your map reaches out further than mine, you’re a higher level.  You should lead the way.  I’ll follow.  I trust you," he finished with a smile.

[wessonnaxis]

Our Rosa. Levi was so annoying, so annoyingly- no, he was just straight up annoying at this point. Why did he have to say our Rosa, why could he just say 'You should hold Rosa', because then, it would imply that there was something that they shared, let alone, a tiny (fake) little person. Why did he have to act like they had something in common?

"I don't want to hold it," Wes retorted, making sure to stress that, no, he didn't care if it had a name, he wasn't going to acknowledge it as a person, "Fake baby or not, I don't want it to like, throw up on me or something," he added.

Ttruth be told, baby spit up would not be the grosses thing Wes could be covered in. Blood and creature guts and dirt and god knows what else had all coated Wesson's skin at some point; anything a baby could make couldn't be much worse. But he refused to hold her, only because Levi seemed to be insistent on it happening. And Wes was just as stubbornly insistent that it was never happening.

I trust you. Why did he have to smile like that? Why was anyone capable of smiling like that? Why would someone that fucking big have the ability to smile like that, especially while holding a baby? Wes turned around quickly, tightening the grip on his knife.

"Whatever, lets keep moving," Wes coughed, visibly bristling from the comment.

Wes made sure to step extra loud on a low branch on a bush they passed, hearing the crack of it under his boot as he tried to find a path that was easily navigable for the Hulk and the drooling poop machine.  

"OVER THE RIVER AND THROUGH THE WOODS," Wes sang at the top of his lungs, "TO ROSA'S SHITTY PARENTS WE GO."

"By the way- how does someone lose their fucking baby?" Wes asked out loud, again. "Like, I'm a huge fuck up, but if I had the mistake of producing spawn, I'd at least have the decency to not leave it behind. That's just plain irresponsible." 

Wes decided if Levi was going to be annoyingly charming through this whole trip, Wesson was going to do his best to be just as equally obnoxiously annoying, if not more. And luckily, it came rather easily to him. As he navigated carefully over the intertwining roots of the trees, he rested a palm against the trunk, steadying himself. 

"Careful," he instructed, "it's pretty easy to trip up here. Last thing we need is for you to go 'Fe Fi Fo Fum', then we'll have to bring a baby pancake back to it's parents."

Why did Wes care if Levi tripped and fell? It wasn't a real baby. He could take it out of Levi's arms and punt it into the woods if he wanted to. He totally could. He wouldn't because he needed the points, but the point was, he could. They moved on in silence for a few moments, before Wes paused, noticing a strange, high pitched noise that seemed to come from just over the horizon.

"Do you hear that? What the fu-"

But at that point, it was already too late. A small cloud of them descended, flitting through the leaves of the trees.

Motherfucking bats. 

[shuttxr]

… sorry. Didn’t mean to piss you off, Wesson! 

[wessonnaxis]

You didn't.

[shuttxr]

Two whole hours? You must be tired now.

[wessonnaxis]

Yes, Shutter, that is generally what happens after two hours of continuous activity.

In other news, water is wet, the sun is hot, and you're a dumb ass. 

[levixculus]

hush little baby - levi, wes; quest.

[levixculus]

"He sure talks a lot, doesn’t he, Rosa?" Levi asked the infant.  She responded by giggling - a proper reaction to the question Wesson had brought up.

While it was a long winded spiel to get to his point, Wesson did make a good one.  Levi wondered how many duplicates of baby Rosa were currently in the game;  were they even duplicates or did they change the person completely?  Or did baby Rosa match up to the people who she was brought by?  Once the question was pierced out, more questions just came flooding in.  Curiosity was a terrible curse, but some times, it reaped its rewards.

"I don’t know how many baby Rosas are out there, Wesson," Levi said he sped up his pace, trying to catch up with the younger boy ahead of him.  Levi had never been a slow walker.  Most of the time, people were trying to catch up to him - being tall had its perks, after all.  Unfortunately, carrying a baby in his arms made him more conscious about his movements.  NPC or not, baby Rosa was still a baby.  "But this one," Levi grinned, "This is our baby.”

A gentle laugh came from Levi, one that shook the baby in his arms ever so softly.  Levi wasn’t a father, but he was an older brother.  He was only eight the first time got to hold his baby sister in his arms.  That day was the first day that Levi had discovered he might have had a knack for creativity.  How many children came up with the idea of putting on a ‘for sale' sign on their sister's crib? - he had good reasoning at the time:  she smelled bad and wouldn't stop crying.  Except, over the years he did grow fond of her.  That's the reason he was here, wasn't he?  To save that little sister of his.  There was a price for her and he'd get the levels to exchange for it.

Levi stared at Wes.  He’d been buried in his own thoughts that, despite being able to multi-task, even that last statement from Wes caught him by surprise.

"No stuffing babies in bags.  Even if they are NPCs," Levi shook his head at Wes, frowning at the younger boy.  "We’ll just go through the forests.  Granted, I think the caves would be faster, but strategically, it’s going to hinder us.  I don’t even have a lantern item or anything of that kind.  I should have asked Shutter when I met up with him earlier."

[wessonnaxis]

So Levi liked talking to Rosa more than to Wes- not that he cared. Wesson wasn't about to get jealous of a baby. Why would he be jealous anyway? It was one thing to be lame and talk to a real baby, but he was talking to a fake baby. 

"Leviculus, more like Lameculus," Wesson muttered, swinging his trench knife at some overhanging leaves, before snickering at his own joke. That guy was an idiot. Why was he so fucking pretty.

The unfortunate victim of his frustrations was an old oak tree; Wesson took it upon himself to stab into it's trunk a few times with his new knife as he waited for Levi to catch up. He half hoped that maybe, the tree would come alive and try to kill them, or maybe some angry animal would drop out of the tree, and they could ditch the baby and leave. Or, better yet, maybe a giant lion would appear out of nowhere and eat the baby. That'd be pretty cool. 

Wesson was about to ask Levi if lions were able to climb trees, or if that was a different species of cat, before he heard Levi say "our baby".

"She's not our baby," Wesson snapped, maybe a bit too quickly, before yanking his knife out of the tree, and returning it to the holder on his belt, "Don't you know mpreg is only in fanfic?" he snorted, covering his temporary frustration. Why did Levi have to say shit like that? 

Wesson took a few more steps as he and Levi delved into the discussion of what their plan of action was. 

"Ah, what it must be like to be so hulking and giant that your self preservation instinct is hindered," Wes observed out loud, audibly enough for Levi to hear him, "Good plan, Goliath, but for the rest of us who can't crush our enemies' heads with our pecs, we don't fucking know what's in the woods."

Wes tapped his chin. Think, Wes. Think. Levi had a point, they could go through the woods. It wasn't quite dark yet, so there was a chance they could avoid anyone or anything. But Wes wasn't about to leave their fate up to chance; he learned early enough that if anything bad could happen in Naxis, it most likely would. But, then there was bats... and he hated bats. Stupid fucking bats.

"Fine, we go through the woods," Wes nodded, "but only because I fucking hate bats." 

[wessonnaxis]

Who knew stabbing things for two hours could feel so rewarding?

[wessonnaxis]

Congratulations, player Wesson. You have reached level 5.

Hell yeah, I did.

[wessonnaxis]

Shiny New Toy // Solo Quest

"Here are you goddamn bats," Wesson announced dryly, tossing the bloody carcasses of the bats he just slaughtered onto the table of the merchant's store unceremoniously. In some ways, Wes secretly wished that the NPCs could rattle on more than their pre-programmed lines. Sure, they were a lot more responsive than most NPCs in any other game, but it was still obvious that you weren't talking to someone not quite human. And as embarrassing as it was, maybe things would be a little less lonely if Wes could pretend he was talking to an actual living, breathing human. He wasn't invested in finding his Wilson per say, just someone, or something, to make it more bearable, without the emotional attachment. A friend hooker. He was looking for a friend hooker.

"Thank you!" the NPC merchant began to rattle on incessantly. Wes merely sighed, tuning him out and waiting for the mention of how much crz and items he could collect as a result of his bounty.

"... Ah, let me repay you. You're about to level up soon, would you be interested in one of these weapons?" 

And immediately, the merchant had Wesson's full attention.

"What do you got?" he asked, raising a brow.

"The trench knife," the merchant began, "a crude knife used in close combat."

"Right," Wes nodded, "Next?"

"The balisong," the merchant continued, "a small, folded pocket knife, less powerful but for quick use."

Then there was the shuriken, throwing stars for ranged attacks. Less powerful than the others, but perfect for sneak attacks. The wooden sword was a good all around weapon, but seemed rather flimsy. The stone axe was huge, but seemed too cumbersome to wield, at least, for Wes. The wooden club was pretty effective, but seemed a bit too primitive for Wes' taste. Then there was the quarterstaff, basically the long stick with a curved end, and finally, brass knuckles. Wes was sure in the right hands (pun intended) they could deliver quite a punch (second pun, also intended), but he wanted something a little more substantial, than just elevating his own fighting style.

What was his fighting style, Wes wondered? One of the only good things about being absolutely piss poor and living in the boonies back home was that, Wes participated in his fair share of fights. He wasn't some crazy MMA fighting ninja warrior, but he knew the basics of defending himself. He could analyze a person's fight style pretty easily, predict their moves well enough, and was quick enough and strong enough to get in a good punch or two, though he wasn't skilled enough to escape without a busted lip or even a black eye. How many times had he'd gone drinking with the other guys on the crew (everyone conveniently forgetting he wasn't quite yet twenty one), only for their inebriated joy to quickly turn sour, usually erupting into some stupid testosterone fueled bar fight with guys from a few towns over? 

Wes never started fights, that was one thing that rang true in the real world, and he carried into Naxis. Starting fights was stupid, especially when violence wasn't necessary. As much as he liked to pretend he was a certain way, at the very least, Wesson was confident enough in himself to not feel the need to swing his weight around or establish some alpha male ranking system in the form of unnecessary violence. We would, however, defend himself, and finish a fight if he had to, and ensure he could come out alive. Survival was something Wesson was a natural at. 

When it came to Naxis, Wes was a pretty well rounded fighter. He didn't feel comfortable having a particularly gaping weakness. He wasn't the strongest, or the fastest, or had the strongest defense, but chose to make sure all of his bases were covered. He could be quick enough if he had to, he didn't find anything embarrassing about avoiding a fight, especially if he wasn't quite up to par with his foe. He also wasn't a coward, and would hold his ground if he thought he had a fair chance. When it came to battling alongside others, well, he wasn't quite sure what role he'd play in a group combat. He hadn't quite gotten close enough with anyone to see how that played out.

As Wes analyzed the weapons before him, weighing the pros and cons, it soon because quite simple what weapon would suit him best.

"The trench knife," Wes said with a nod, picking it up and turning it over in his hands, "I'll take the trench knife."

[yo-han-park]

The sun has risen once again. Whether this morning is good or not though, I shan’t say.

I wonder how many, if even any, will bother with the formality of acknowledging the start of this new day.

[wessonnaxis]

Damn, forgot to say good morning to the sun. Sure hope I didn't hurt it's feelings. 

Pretty sure that starting the day all Mister Rogers is low on everyone's list of priorities, dude. 

[thespinneroftales-deactivated20]

I’m getting paranoid like Dug in Up. I swear these squirrels are always up to something. 

[thespinneroftales-deactivated20]

[wessonnaxis]

I'll throw you a tennis ball and you'll forget all about it.

[levixculus]

hush little baby - levi, wes; quest.

[levixculus]

"Because Narnia is definitely one way to describe Naxis," Levi mused.  It wasn’t too far off of an observation - trapped in a nearly foreign land, forced to partake in a ritual no one knew much of and of course, the fact that there wasn’t even the slightest hint that home was a reward to be given.  Levi didn’t have a satyr with a scarf accompanying him during this, but given his current partner in front of him, he wasn’t complaining.  Not much.

"Her name is Rosa,” Levi stated matter-of-factually to Wesson, as if the tone of his voice could persuade the less than thrilled boy in front of him into liking the infant.  He smiled with delight as the baby in his arms babbled at the sound of her name.  “And, she isn’t crying right now, Wesson.  She’s pretty calm, isn’t that right, Rosa?” Levi grinned at the baby.  He cooed over the child and played with her for a few moment, getting her to giggle.

Levi wasn’t an expert with children.  He was hardly able to take care of himself - remembering when to eat was a hassle for him back in New York, especially during deadlines - and there was no way he would be able to take care of a child.  Not when his current apartment had a noise policy that would have kicked him out had Rosa been with him.  It wasn’t an official policy, just one imposed by a grouchy old woman who hated noise.  Though, Rosa’s crying could be hardly be considered noise compared to the rapid successions of parties and arguments and conversations held in New York, he could sympathize with Wesson’s statement.

"We’ll take the slow and steady path then," Levi nodded in agreement with his own statement.  "As long as baby Rosa’s quiet and not fussy, I’m sure we can get through this pretty fast.  Poor girl, I hope we get her to her mom soon."

[wessonnaxis]

"Oh right, Rosa," Wes reiterated in a slightly mocking tone, "Forgive me for hurting the fake baby's feelings." 

NPCs were seriously the bane of Wes' existence, especially annoying lifelike NPCs that were created just to make his life miserable. Still, he had to admit, the baby was pretty cute. As long as he didn't have to hold her, he could admire her from afar. And she seemed to take more of a shine to Levi anwyay. It was a win-win situation. Not that he was admiring them. Or staring at them. He was definitely, absolutely focused on the quest, and nothing more. 

Wes took the lead once more, though it didn't seem necessary- the path was pretty open, and surprisingly quiet. And while anyone else might let their guard down, Wesson just found himself more suspicious. There was no such thing as an easy route, not in Naxis. 

"Hey, you know, I was thinking of something," Wes mused out loud, not really caring if Levi was actually listening to him or not, "There's like, thousands, if not millions of people in Naxis, right? And like, it's gotta be a given that people will do the same quests at the same time, right?" He kicked a rock on their path, glancing back quickly to make sure he wasn't too far ahead of his traveling companions, "So like, how many baby Rosa's are there? Are there like, millions of Rosas? Will Rosa be a baby forever? What the fuck do they do with all the baby Rosa's after this quest is done? Do they just reuse them or is there like, a pit they throw them into?"

Sometimes, Wes just liked to hear himself talk. No, Wes always liked to hear himself talk. He actually wasn't too invested in the life of the infinite Rosas, but he thought the idea of a baby pit was just too hilarious of a mental image not to share. Wes was too busy laughing at the baby pit that he almost forgot one crucial part of the path they took.

"Shit," Wesson stopped, hopping up on a large boulder before turning to Leviculus.

"I forgot about the cluster of caves on this path." He scowled, "They're filled with so many goddamn-" he made a disgusted expression, "-bats. Like, a fuck ton."

He chewed his lower lip, scrunching up his face as he tried to think of a a different route.

"We could go through the forest, but it's longer, and probably way more dangerous. Who knows what's in there." He sighed out loud, "And I mean, if we're quiet and this thing, I mean, Rosa, doesn't cry when we go by there, we might get lucky and they won't bother us..." 

Wes tapped his foot, and crossed his arms, "Can't we just like, stuff her in a bag when we go by the caves? She's not even a real baby anyway. She should be fine, right?"

[levixculus]

hush little baby - levi, wes; quest.

“Shh, shh.”

Baby Rosa might have been an NPC, but she responded exactly the way most babies would have.  Her cries mimicked plenty of the ones Levi had heard in the busy sidewalks and department stores of New York - all that was missing was a mother telling the baby to simmer down while she tried to haggle.  There was no mother to calm the baby down while she attempted to get a discount;  Levi had to step in.

"Shhh, it’s okay, Rosa," Levi pulled the upset infant closer to him, gently bringing her to his chest.  He rocked her back and forth gently;  a gentle smile came to him as he watched her settle into a soft calmness.  Even if baby Rosa was a NPC, she still elicited that same warm feeling babies did.  "There you go," Levi spoke to the now relaxed infant, "See, everything’s going to be alright."

With baby Rosa now calmed and quiet, Levi looked up to see where his current quest partner was headed.  With Swynden being their destination, Levi hoped that this trip wouldn’t lead into the night.  Traveling at night, even in a group was a dangerous, dangerous task.  He looked up for a split second.  The sun was still high, so they had a good few hours to get there but he wanted to make sure they could there faster.  If they were attacked, Levi would be hindered.  As cute as babies were, they would be terrible during attacks.

"Do you happen to know any shortcuts to Swynden?  Any faster routes?" Levi asked of his quest partner, hoping for a helpful answer.

[wessonnaxis]

There was nothing more annoying than what Wes had to deal with now. Part of him silently cursed being a whore for points; what wouldn't Wesson do for exp? Not much, is what he was quickly beginning to learn. Even if it meant dealing with... that. He had been pretty good at avoiding it his entire life, he had been careful, so careful. In fact, he had structured his life to go around that exact thing, from since before he could even remember. It was just hard wired into him. And, they were everywhere, weren't they? Even with the best planning, he'd run smack dab into them. Sometimes it almost felt like fate was taunting him, because just when it seemed like he'd escape, there'd be one. It was unavoidable.

Babies, Wes would candle. Babies, Wes was fine with. Dads with babies, on the other hand. 

Behemoth (that's what Wes was calling him, now; Leviculus was too long of a name and Levi just made him think of jeans) wasn't a dad, per-say, but it didn't make the impact any less effective. Especially see him coo at the fussy baby, the tiny thing nestled so comfortable in the crook of his arm... yeah. Unfair. Definitely unfair. Wes didn't even realize he was frowning, it just kind of came as a natural response to that. 

Avoidance was the best option, which is why Wesson had earlier mumbled about "scouting ahead" so he wouldn't have to bare witness to that. 

"Yeah," Wes slowed his pace, upon hearing Levi's question. He turned, a blank expression on his face, "We just head over to the wardrobe that leads to Narnia, take a short detour, and there we go." Wes huffed, aware that even at his snarkiest, he was being overly bitchy. To compensate, perhaps.

"Dude, I'm not even at level 10. I'm pretty sure this is the quickest and safest away. Especially with that..." his eyes quickly glanced over to baby Rosa, before averting his gaze, as if staring too long would turn him to stone, "...thing, crying all the damn time."

Wes shoved his hands into his pockets, furrowing his eyebrows. It really was stupid. And unfair. 

Do it for the EXP, he reminded himself. Because, that was honestly the only reason he agreed to go on the quest in the first place. The only reason at all. 

[wessonnaxis]

Duo!Quest w/Wesson. "Dinner Bells"

[xneun-ssong]

There was no way around it. He was strange and creepy. Being in a virtual reality couldn’t change that fact, but at least he wasn’t as bad as sasaengs. Now those people were on a different level of creepy. As much as she loved attention, some people’s obsession with her was just too extreme. The paparazzi were terrible, but sasaengs, or extreme fans, as they preferred to call themselves, were, arguably, the worst. Ssong shivered at the thought. 

"It’s good to be aware of it…" She sighed and then rubbed her arms, trying to get rid of the cold thought. "Some people don’t even know…" Her voice trailed off as she remembered a few encounters with the crazed sasaengs. Ssong held her arms tightly and furrowed her brows. If her group mates hadn’t been around then she would have clocked the bastards. She blew out a puff of air and looked back at the guy. "There isn’t a lot of cheese where I’m from." 

She shrugged and then stepped over the threshold. Ssong scanned the dining area and nodded once she found an acceptable table. Without thinking, she grabbed his arm and gently tugged toward where she wanted to go. “Over there.” She looked up and grinned at him before she pointed at the table. When she was sure that he knew where to go, she released him and headed toward her choice. 

The table itself was located in the centre of the dining area and it didn’t have chairs to accompany it. Instead, the table was raised high and meant for patrons who didn’t mind standing. Perhaps she was overthinking it, but she believed that the table’s location seemed safer than anywhere else. There was the table in the corner of the whole place, but she liked being nearer to a door. 

Ssong stopped momentarily to check on him. She glanced over her shoulder and smiled. It was time to play the idol card and hide most of her discomfort. She took in a deep breath and exhaled. “Ssong, and it’s no fun if you can’t guess what I do.” She giggled and continued on her way. When she arrived, she leaned forward and against the table while she waited for him. “I’ll guess, too!” 

"Do you work in a circus?" She asked innocently. The clothing in this virtual reality didn’t give anyone hints about who other people were in the real world, but his hair was pretty crazy, so she felt like it was an educated guess. "Or you’re a magician?" Ssong shrugged. There were just too many jobs that could have caused his hair to look like that. 

[wessonnaxis]

It was interesting to slowly piece together who and what exactly a person was, especially when your only clues were your own immediate perceptions of them. Wes was beginning to see exactly who Ssong was, or at least, how she was projecting herself at the moment. A part of him was considering how bad of a choice he had made for a dining partner, but there was no getting around it; it was much too late now. 

"I should've thrown more rocks at her," Wesson entertained the idea to himself. 

Getting manhandled in the pub was another surprise for Wes. He followed, a brow raised, more surprised and amused to protest, before leaning against the table of her choice.

"Sure you don't need a booster seat?" he smirked, eyeing the girl before resting an elbow on the table. Wes took a brief glance around the pub; it wasn't too packet, but with another patrons scattered here or there. He wouldn't let his guard down, necessarily, but there didn't seem to be any major threats, at least, not anything too apparent. He turned to the girl just as she began to speak. 

"Yes. I work in a circus," Wes answered with such serious conviction, as if his whole life was dedicated to the art of performing under the big top, "I graduated with honors at circus school. I think I might go back to get my circus doctorate. I'd like to have my PhD in working at the circus."

He stared at Ssong for a few moments before rolling his eyes. "No, I don't work in a fucking circus. Is that a legitimate occupation for most people where you live or something?"

There was the tiniest bit of resentment bubbling in Wesson's chest; he couldn't help it. The entire world, especially Naxis, was essentially a competition for the boy, and as childish as it was, his ego was an incredibly flimsy thing. The seemingly innocent guess rubbed him the wrong way, almost making him lose himself in guessing the implications of what that guess was supposed to mean. 

"Okay, so I'll guess yours," Wes replied lightly, tracing a finger along the grains of wood on the table they were seated out, "Is 'manager' just a euphemistic term for 'pimp'? So like, you're a hooker. Who gets... gifts?" He raised a brow, forcing his expression to hide his childish competitive streak, "You must be used to this then." 

It wasn't long before one of the bar wenches approached them, which Wesson was eternally grateful for; he was hungry, and somehow, it didn't seem like his and Ssong's dining conversation wasn't going at a good start, so any distraction was a welcome one.

"Just... food, and a lot of it," he instructed. He paused a moment before adding, "And uh... do you have... cheese?" He turned to Ssong quickly, "What kind of cheese do you even want?" Wes wasn't a cheese connoisseur, but ordering random pub cheese seemed pretty suspect, but he figured it wasn't his stomach that was going to suffer. 

[shuttxr]

It is super strong! I underestimated it and I paid the consequences right after.

[wessonnaxis]

I cannot imagine you drunk, whatsoever.

[wessonnaxis]

You know what I miss?

Nothing. I miss nothing. On another note, beer in Naxis is actually pretty fucking strong. 

[wessonnaxis]

Is it just me, or is it hotter than Satan's ball sack in Naxis today?