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"Never been better."[break][break]
Some of it was a lie. Some of it was the truth. Some of it was more complicated than a Facebook relationship between a rubiks cube, rocket science, and an Avril Lavigne single. All of it was swept under the umbrella of the winning smile Isaac shot
El Sunderland's way. The slight strain of the past was met on by the bright hopes of a new future, one Isaac couldn't spend cooped up in some hospital bed.[break][break]
Maybe he'd need that smile where he was going. Isaac's disappearance hadn't fallen on deaf ears. His re-emergence, in turn, had been met by prying eyes.
Kouji Matsubara approached Isaac with a knowing smirk in his eyes. His pat on the back was a little too hard. His posture was a little too dangerous.[break][break]
Yet, in his own strange way, that was how he expressed camaraderie. Isaac knew Kouji would make good on those vicious promises he'd made, and yet he knew there wouldn't be a shred of malice behind it. Did that make it better or worse? Kouji was always such a hard one to figure out.
"Could say the same for you," Isaac said, returning a wry smirk of his own.[break][break]
Tempest Quinn wasn't Kouji. He wore his heart on his sleeve. He made his intentions all too clear. Kouji's pat on the back, for all the implications beneath it, was genuine in its own weird way. Temp's hug was more of a grab. His smile was little more than bare teeth. The look in his eye made his true feelings all too clear.[break][break]
Had Isaac known Temp was here, he would have skirted around him as he did
Aurelie Lefevre. This was another one that hurt; someone he genuinely thought the world of, now thinking he was the scum of the earth. Did Temp even know why Isaac had been kicked out? Did he even know what Isaac had gone through? Or was his stubborn refusal to die just
Cillian Quinn's pillow talk of the night?[break][break]
Isaac refused to let himself outwardly wither. However, while it was just the two of them so close, his eye wandered to meet Temp's.
"Temp, please," he whispered, so quiet it could be mistaken for a whistle in the wind.[break][break]
Luckily, he wouldn't be alone in the lion's den.
Rowan Wrynn made his way out from the Lotad pond, shooting Isaac a wave and a smile.
Genevieve Cromwell snatched his wrist, prying him away from Temp and closer towards her. El had his back at all times, and that went without saying by this point. They were four to two, and the two would need to risk their lives if they wanted to try anything. Isaac didn't hate those odds.[break][break]
Security brought a warm smile back to his face.
"Sheesh, guess I'm popular today," he joked, because it was both easier and healthier than letting himself panic.
"It's good to see you all." He meant that, even towards Temp. Especially towards Temp.[break][break]
For all the people clustering around him, he wasn't the only one here. Some people loudly wondered what a kid was doing here. Concern shone in Isaac's eyes as he wondered just who the heck decided to tag along. It was always so much easier to feel it for others than himself.[break][break]
Said concern immediately faded when he spotted
Eris Halla' little hat poking out from the crowd. Frankly, Isaac trusted her to handle herself better than most adults by this point. Sure, she could do better at making smart choices, but she was even better than he was at worming her way out of her own bad decisions. As soon as she grew out of making them in the first place, she'd be unstoppable.[break][break]
Before anyone else could dogpile onto him, Genny staked her claim. She looped an arm around Isaac's, pulling him surprisingly close with a surprising amount of strength. Frankly, he wasn't complaining. There was safety in numbers, and there was something comforting in having her here. He intertwined his arm with hers, silently glad she didn't grab the one that had been broken weeks ago.
"Aye aye, boss," he gently teased, a cheeky grin on his face.[break][break]
That cheeky grin faltered a little as he saw the severed leg.
"Eris," Isaac gently chided, because what the hell child. It was easier to focus on her decision to start poking it with a stick than it was to focus on the literal severed human leg kicking around in the first place, because what the fuck nature.[break][break]
"I'd say we should check for footprints," Isaac said, doing his best to scan the muddy, rain-slicked area.
"But between the rain, the fog, and all of us running around . . . not liking our odds. So maybe we should keep an eye out for other signs instead. El, you getting a good view from up there?"[break][break]
For the time being, he'd follow Genny's lead. Cambria stood by her Abomisnow's side, settling down to
Sucker Punch anything that tried to ambush them.[break][break]
Tw9nE5s3[break][break]
TEAL DEER;[break]
Isaac is popular! Kouji and Temp concern him, Genny and Row relieve him.[break]
He suggests scoping out footprints, before realizing they're walking around in a giant bowl of soup.[break]
For now, he and Genny investigate, arm in arm.
[break]
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[attr="class","skullinfo"]MOBILE POST / M-M-M-M-MEGATHREAD
As Shred struggled to get out the mud, the Jumpluff did the only thing she could: cheered. Her little pom-poms smashed together repeatedly, dripping little bits of pollen into the mucky ground below. When he finally emerged, Maggie let out a single cry. “Pluff!” But those sparkling eyes held a teasing light. What a silly little man! Humans are so fragile!
