2026-04-26: Halloween Movie Night

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<Pose Tracker> Ren Amamiya has posed.

    Halloween night falls in the middle of the week this year, on Wednesday; that means no late-night parties. But it is a fine day for a movie night, especially for spooky movies like The Mummy. (Ren presumes, based on how Ann talked about it.) Leblanc has closed early for the night, which means Ren and friends can be as loud and obnoxious as they want--a good thing, considering how small Ren's TV is.
    
    Ren's borrowed a bunch of extra cushions from Sojiro's place to allow places to sit for everyone; they've moved around the table, the couch, the desk chair, so that there's as many spots as possible. The bed they have not moved. That's for them only to sit on--and Makoto, if she so chooses. The movies have not already been prepared--that's for Ann and Tsubasa and whomever else wanted to bring one to bring over.
    
    Popcorn and drinks have been prepared. (Not coffee, just drinks from the convenience store. Ren's Triple Seven employee discount comes in clutch again--the big reason, besides Umie, why they still work there as much as they do despite it paying less than some of their other part-time jobs.) So, too, have some simple Halloween decorations--bats, cats, a few spiderwebs, and black-and-orange crepe paper draped on the walls.
    
    Ren's in a simple costume: a black cat, with ears and tail and painted nose and whispers on their face. They and Morgana have been playing a fun game where he goes 'I'm not a cat!' and Ren follows it up with 'I am a cat. Meow.' It might be fun for only one of them.
    
    There's one more thing that Ren hasn't mentioned aside from to Makoto...
    
        ~ * ~
    
    YESTERDAY
    
    While walking around the farmer's market in Sumaru after school, Ren admires the stack of pumpkins with a slight but genuine smile. "I really enjoy this season," they comment to her. "Halloween's my favorite holiday. I've always loved dressing up, and it's fun to scare and be scared while running around getting candy or joining parties." They shoot her an apologetic smile. "I bet it's less fun for you, though. That's okay--it's also a bittersweet holiday for me."
    
    "Why's that?" Makoto had asked.
    
    "Well, because it's also my birthday."
    
    ...
    
    Suffice to say, there will be more things at this Halloween movie night to celebrate. 

<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.

Ichika was glad to come over for a spooky movie with hot actors. That's how it was sold to her, and that's what she's up for! Snacks and the like are even better--and hearing that a certain birthday is today...

Ichika loves snacks. She also loves Halloween, and spooky things; so, tonight she's dressed in a breezy gray dress, warm against all the chill lately, with boots (well, she had boots) and of course--

Terrifying slit-mouthed makeup that makes her mouth look almost as wide as her entire face, in addition to her usual dramatic eyeliner and eyeshadow. She also has a surgical mask over most of it--at first.

"hi, everybody!" Ichika had said. "Do you think I'm pretty?"

Twirl~

...But the mask comes down around her neck when it's time for snacks. Don't get in the way of Ichika and a good drink. 

<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.

    What's Tsubasa shown up as? Well, lean into type: a frightful red and white curled wig, white and cyan makeup plastered over their face in much greater and more expressive quantities than usual, a big red nose strapped around their head, fancy red and white pyjamas with a big neck ruff, oversized red shoes...

    ... oh no. They're a monstrous clown.

    Lance, meanwhile, is dressed up with a harness which has two plush dog heads sewn to it at the nape of her neck where they won't get in the way, with snakes hanging from the back of the harness... she's Cerberus!!

    They've brought more than their dog, of course, but they put it aside with a completely flat face. "Yo," they say, instead, as they amble up to Ren. "Have a flower."

    And yet, should they take it... IT WILL SPRAY WATER AT THEM! YOU FOOL! A CLOWN'S FLOWER IS TREACHERY!

    "Sucker," Tsubasa flashes a rare grin, as they tuck it back on their chest. "Sup."

<Pose Tracker> Kasumi Yoshizawa has posed.

    Someone who was invited earlier that day, was Kasumi.~ Fortunately, she already had a costume prepped! She arrives in a white and blue dress, and a long, wavy blue wig. Ribbons adorn her chest and her petaled skirt. On her belt, is a pink pouch that holds a little toy.

    "The flower that flutters by the ocean winds, Cure Marine! Hehe~" Kasumi does the pose and everything. She picks her bag back up, containing a selection of traditional Japanese snacks. "Thank you very much for inviting me, Senpai! I really appreciate it!" She offers a bow. Polite as always.~

    She sets down her selections of dango, konpeito, mochi, monakas on the snack table. Kasumi then settles down somewhere in the back of the crowd, lounging on a cushion comfortable. She is a guest after all! However, she gleefully reacts to each costume reveal! The scissor woman, and a monstrous clown...

    And a puppy??!!! "Awhhh!!!" She pspspspsps, wanting to pet the furious Cerberus.~

<Pose Tracker> Ryuji Sakamoto has posed.

From out of nowhere, Featherman Ostrich jumpkicks on to the scene, posing as he lands on his knee. There is a familiar wince as Ryuji gets to his feet, rubbing his knee. "Landed wrong, ow, ow, ow..."

 Finally, Ryuji removes the helmet and grins at Ichika. "Hey, hun! This ok to wear to dinner?" Whatever does he mean?

 For those who aren't closeted Phoenixman stans, Ryuji is currently in a very clingy yellow body suit that hugs his slim physique snuggly. For everyone's sake, Ryuji is also wearing a dance belt under the suit. He holds onto the Ostrich themed helmet under one arm.

 Then Ryuji catches Tsubasa from the corner of his eye. "AHSHIT!...Damnit it, dude. You just had to show up in that.." He then sighs, looking back up as he tries to smile."Heh..I guess that's the point, eh?" Ryuji still looks a little on edge as he finally turns to Ren.

 "Lemme guess, You're gonna lecture me about how much of a dumb dumb I am." He says this with a mischievous grin as he side eyes the actual Morgana. "Might've been cute if Morgana dressed up as you...complete the look...I dunno." He isn't going to try to aggravate the ca--fel--furred person at a party. He also has felt like he has less to prove lately. 

<Pose Tracker> Makoto Niijima has posed.

    Makoto is, perhaps, a touch embarrassed that she only found out it was Ren's birthday yesterday. What kind of girlfriend only finds that sort of thing out the day before! ...That may have been part of why Makoto agreed to stay out and help her datemate investigate the rumours of the Gourd Lord, and how one thing led to another including, apparently, being bullied by a first year!?

    Anyway, the following text was sent out yesterday:

    It turns out Ren's birthday is the same day as the movie night. They haven't made a big deal out of it, so maybe keep it small. I'm going to arrange to pick up a cake and a small gift for her. I thought I'd let everyone know just in case.

    But that means Makoto is a little late to the movie night (which is to say roughly on time, which is late for her!) as it turns out getting a costume, a cake and a gift on short notice takes extra time. She even bailed on schoolwork to make sure she had enough time to do everything.

    Still, when Makoto arrives, she does so in drab green coveralls that seem more functional than costume, cinched with a belt with a pair of leather pouches, orange socks, black boots, motorcycle knee and elbow guards and, of all things, a stripe of green paint going across her cheek that ends in a sharp point.

    It's very... post apocalyptic. Or it would be if it weren't, you know, mostly new?

    Also the effect is a little impacted by the fact that she's carrying a cardboard box from a patisserie in Kagurazaka and her usual bag over her shoulder.

    Still, she shoulders her way into LeBlanc easily enough and makes her way up to the attic where a collection a of horrifying entities and a cool dog and a cute cat and also Morgana are gathered. "Sorry I'm late, I-"

    There is a terrifying clown there. That's great. That's fine. There's a clown and then there's-

    Do you think I'm pretty?

    Makoto lets out a startled yelp as Ichika makes her way too convincing signature line, and it's lucky she has a rigor mortis like grip on the cake.

    Look, SMILE was fucking scary, okay?? She had nightmares about that film for a few nights after she steadfastly refused to tell anyone else about because of cause she didn't.

    The effect is thankfully lessened by the presence of, you know, a magical girl and a sentai hero but still.

    "Ichika!" Makoto yells in complaint, once the initial burst of fear is past, and she manages to get herself sorted and- ...oh hey that's a lot of snacks. Maybe they overcatered...?

    ...though with Yusuke there and Ann's unfair metabolism, maybe it won't be a problem.

    Still, she makes her way to the snack setup and carefully places the cake down, though she doesn't open it yet. There's ceremony to this sort of thing, after all, and everyone has to be there.

    Fortunately, now she's had time for her heart to stop racing, she can actually take in everyone. (Why are half of them so creepy so far??)

    "I'm glad a few of us decided to go for less terrifying costumes, at least..." Makoto says, looking thankfully to Ryuji and Kasumi, as she walks over to stand next to Ren who- might be a little damp, now, given the diabolical nature of clowns.

    "A-anyway. Sorry I'm late. Had to get a few things on the way." 

<Pose Tracker> Yusuke Kitagawa has posed.

Yusuke Kitagawa too is here to partake in the food - sorry, that is to say, the celebration with his comrades and friends.

Also the food, though.

His costume, once he's shucked his jacket, is leaning more towards Ichika's choice of theme: A 'yurei', spirit of a departed person who has been improperly interred or who died of violence. He is dressed in a loosely-fastened katabira - a plain white and unlined kimono - with a tenkan headband. He has also painted some cardboard cut in the shape of blue-green fiery hitodama, held on sticks that he can hold or tuck into his obi.

He nods in approval to Ichika. "An excellent depiction of the kuchisake-onna." Tsubasa, on the other hand, gets a curious head-tilt. "I was not aware clowns were considered frightening. Interesting, and very striking."

There's also Kasumi and Ryuji's pop culture choices, which also earn a critical - but approving - eye and nod from Yusuke. "We appear to be collecting quite a cast of characters." 

<Pose Tracker> Haru Okumura has posed.

As an avid enjoyer of horror herself, Halloween has always been one of her favourite holidays, especially as she's grown older. That alone would entice her to find a way to show up to Leblanc for the evening, but knowing whose birthday it is, there was no way she could miss this.

And so, a perfectly innocuous nun enters the room, donned with pale, almost sickly makeup. A devout holy woman has no place amongst such rogues, does she? And- wait she's carrying an axe. Of course she is. A fake, wooden one, of course. "Forgive me the sin if I'm late to this party." Haru clasps her hands together, leaving the axe by the door.

She smiles as she takes in everyone's costumes. "My, if it isn't my loyal sidekick!" Haru giggles to Joker, dressed as a cat.

"I'd say you are~" She winks to Ichika, knowing full well what she's playing on. Even if Makoto is far less receptive...

Tsubasa unleashes a Cerberus upon the party. "Oh my... now there's three of her!" Haru kneels down to pet Lance. "Aren't you a good little Cerberus~" She likes the horror clown look for sure, that's been super popular lately, hasn't it?

She approves of Ryuji and Kasumi's costumes too, of course. Those were some of her favourite shows growing up!

"Hello, Mako-chan~" Haru smiles to Makoto, the fake blood sprayed across her cheeks becoming significantly more apparent. "You're looking cool today!" 

<Pose Tracker> Ann Takamaki has posed.

<3 "HAPPY--"

                             Y E S T E R D A Y

Ann Takamaki's wardrobe is a daunting thing. If you hate shopping, and fashion, at least. If you don't -- it's an inspiration. A daunting inspiration.

Deep and overflowing with clothes, Ann is currently looking over what seems to be a selection of costumes with a faint frown on her lips. Ann loves Halloween; she loves dressing up, she loves horror movies, she loves candy -- it's all the bests, all lined up! But... it's been a long time since she's felt like she could really celebrate Halloween and still feel comfortable about it. People stare. They judge.

And for the past couple years, at least... it's felt especially unsafe.

But today is a new day in a new year with new friends and a new Halloween, and now -- Ann Takamaki is going all out.

"Mmm. This one? Or maybe it's overdoing it... but this one looks so childish... ugh!"

... whiiiich mostly means she's hemming and hawing over her choices.

So this is Ann, currently staring at a succubus outfit consisting of a canny halter top and skirt and some very exquisitely crafted wings and tail with a growing, uncertain frown when--

ping!

she gets a text!

She looks at it. Reads. Her eyes widen.

"F-for real?!" she gasps, and then types:

> 4 real?!

"Ugh, I can't believe that jerk wouldn't tell me about something so important! Okay! If that's the case, I'm going all out--!"

And this is when Ann Takamaki pivoted because she knew -- no existing costume she owned would do. She had to go... SHOPPING.

                                   N O W

"--BIRTHDAY~!!" <3

anyway so that's how Ren got pounced by Edea

No but literally the door to Leblanc has barely jingled open when Ren is suddenly set upon from behind by a figure in a long black ballgown dress with a plunging neckline and a black fur collar and long, opera sleeves, ended with immaculately-crafted claws. She's got the whole gold (painted) doohicky on her back too, with the white capelets draped and everything; god knows how she manages. Her make-up game is on-point, from the purple lipstick to the aggressive eyeshadow of a matching shade -- she's even got on yellow contacts?!

And of course, she has the headdress, her long hair painstakingly bound underneath,

a fact that Ren will be acutely aware of due to the horns kind of nudging into their neck.

"Oh wow, look at you!" Ann suddenly says with wide-eyed alarm, tragically unaware that she is kind-of-sort-of horn-stabbing Ren as she looks from him to Morgana to him to Morgana -- and suddenly beams out a big grin. "Hee hee, you're like, totally big sibling and little brother~!"

Of course, how her arms are wrapped around Ren in friendly, painful, horn-jabbing embrace, anyone might notice the fact that she is holding a proverbial pile of DVDs she's brought with her. All horror, obviously. The top of the list? The Mummy, of course.

This is, of course, when she takes the time to look over everyone else, delight in those contact-yellow eyes. "Everyone looks great - and scary, whoa, Ichika, Okumura-senpai, those are so cool! - oh my gosh is that a dog?! He's so adorable! He--"

Ann pauses. Squints. She (fortunately) releases Ren to place hands on hips, and stare at Lance with a squint.

"-- D-doesn't Orthrus have two heads, though...?"

And so this is Edea, who could have all the villainous presence in the world by looks alone,

if only she weren't Ann.

look, it's not her fault Cerberus Shadows only have one head 

<Pose Tracker> Ren Amamiya has posed.

    "I'm not going to answer that with your datemates in the room," Ren tells Ichika straight-faced. Now is that a regular Kuchisake-Onna or is it the Kuchisake-Onna from hit summer horror film SMILE...?
    
    Evil Clown Tsubasa offers them a flower. Ren pats Cerberus Lance first, then takes the flower without thinking--and gets spritzed in the face for their troubles!! Tsubasa grins and calls them a sucker, and Ren scowls without any anger (since it was just a faint spritz so as not to mess up their make-up). "hsssss," they hiss.
    
    "Hey, that hiss was actually pretty good," Morgana comments from the desk.
    
    "Of course. Because I'm a cat." Ren curls a paw-hand at him. "Meow." This is just when Haru arrives in Evil Nun form and calls them her sidekick. "Meow meow meow," they reiterate, raising a paw-shaped hand and curling it at her as they grin.
    
    Morgana sighs and rolls his too-blue eyes. "Are you making fun of me?" he grumbles.
    
    "Never. There's only one cat here, and that's me." With Morgana mollified, Ren turns to the doorway. "Hey, Yoshizawa, you made it. Thanks for coming by," they say, smiling at Kasumi when she arrives. Too bad she doesn't have Cure Blossom with her. "Everyone, this is my friend, Kasumi Yoshizawa." Most of them already know her, but there's a couple who wouldn't yet.
    
    To Ryuji, they say, "Well, yeah--you don't want to jump around and pose like that on a bad leg... You okay?" They crook a smile at the suggestion that Morgana should've dressed up as them, though. "That would've been fun. Too bad they don't make costumes in his size."
    
    Makoto's arrival with a cake box brightens them, and they get up to cross the room and join her. "You're not late at all," they reassure her as they open their arms to pull her close if she so chooses. "I thought you'd appreciate some non-scary costumes." Never mind that black cats are scary to the superstitious--clearly Makoto doesn't share that fear.
    
    Yurei Yusuke gets a grin. "Very nice," they compliment him. "Great use of less-is-more. Feel free to dig in." He will anyway, Ren knows perfectly well, but at least this means he does so with permission. They do look down at the cake Makoto brought in curiosity, but before they can get a better look, ANN STRIKES.
    
    And given the massive head-horns and long, long, LONG dress, that's a lot of STRIKING to do. Ren yelps, flailing for a moment as Ann nearly tackles them to the ground. When they recover, though, they laugh. "Thanks for remembering," they say fondly as they hug her back, apparently having not realized they never told her in the first place. They look her up and down next--to check out her costume, of course. It's quite impressive. They express how impressed they are by leeeeeeeeaning their head back to stop (mostly stop) getting jabbed in the neck by those horns. "You really went all out. Are those colored contacts?" A beat. "You want me to help you with those movies? We can get the first one started soon."
    
    Morgana, meanwhile, withers at the concept that he and Black Cat Ren would be siblings (litter mates). "L-Lady Ann.........."

<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.

"Wise," Ichika says to Ren with a mock-serious nod of her head. This is general--she wanted to do her own take, not just the movie's, though the movie clearly gave her some inspiration.

"Ahahahaha," Ichika reacts to Makoto's reaction. "That's perfect!" She beams at Haru, meanwhile, when she plays along--but is nice enough not to continue when Makoto's already too afraid. But she spots Haru's costume and shudders herself. "...Aaaah." Then she notices the axe. "Oh, cool!"

...Nuns get to her, OK?

 The smiling has a very frightening effect when paired with all the makeup, lengthening her lips considerably--

She appreciates Ryuji's clingy muscle bodysuit, too. And when he reacts to Tsubasa, she laughs again. "Nice. You got him, Tsubasa."

She of course loves the outfit--and is too wise to take the flower. She brought over Tsubasa and Lance, so has seen both already.

"Morgana would be so cute in a little suit," Ichika agrees with Ryuji. "Gentlemen can be cute!" She offers him to mollify the complaint she knows is coming.

She smiles at Yusuke--toothily. "Thanks," she says.

And then--

"Whoa," Ichika says, staring for just a moment at Ann--before she breaks into a wide grin. "You look AMAZING!" she says. "Last Saga 8, right? My brother loved that one!"

"Nice to meet you, Yoshizawa-san," Ichika says then. "You look great, too!" She compliments everybody's costume in fact.

"Yeah," then she says, "Happy birthday. We're really glad you're here."

Big sibling and little brother...

Yep, that's perfect. Ichika takes the time to set down her gift--wrapped, a small case about the size of a pen case--on tbe table, and then goes to get a drink. "Movie! Movie!" 

<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.

    Lance loves all this attention. She's well-trained enough not to lick people's faces, but she will lick their hands, and mash her face into them, and wriggle wriggle wriggle. Tosa inu like her are the traditional fighting dogs of Japan, but Lance could never be mistaken for one, both in her friendliness and in her happy 'BORK's.

    "Lance is a chick," they remind Ann, though they're still smiling. "Ichika named her after th' weapon. Figured it was fierce." And to the idea that she ought to have one head, they explain, helpfully: "Depends on what kinda myth ya talkin'. Sometimes Cerberus got fifty heads. Sometimes it's one dog head an' a shitload a snake heads. Supposed to have a serpent tail, too, but I can't be puttin' shit on Lance's tail." The reason for that, of course, is because it's wagging a hundred miles a minute.

    And Ren is a cat, who hisses, entirely on cue, when spritzed with water. "Heheheheh," Tsubasa grins, a touch too viciously... and with a glance to Morgana, before they look back to Ren, they add: "There's only one cat I see here I gotta torment with this thing."

    Because, of course, Morgana is not a cat, but obviously Tsubasa can't say that to him directly when there's someone they don't immediately recognise coming in. "Yo," they lift a hand, in a salute, to Kasumi, when she's introduced -- and they greet her after Lance does, because Lance is just friendlier than Tsubasa is. "Name's Seki -- Tsubasa. Neutral pronouns guy. You got some sweet digs. Got a wand?" They know about magical girl anime! Broadly.

    Ryuji jumping has them grinning too, though they flash him a thumbs-up over his own dashing costume. "Sick. Yeah I did, dude." That grin only widens, when Makoto tries to play off the evil clown as fine. "Badass," is their comment on her outfit. Yusuke doesn't get it, though, and Tsubasa helpfully explains: "Clowns are fuckin' terrifyin' in th' West. Nice local horrors, man."

    They aside to Ichika, marvelling on Haru's holy costume: "Careful. Not sure if you get set on fire or she does, but..." Hey, that's when Ichika goes to church, Tsubasa! "Gang up with Ann-chan, strength in numbers."

    With Ann breaking down the barriers in her usual boisterous manner, though, Tsubasa turns to Ren to make it explicit: "Yeah, happy birthday, Ren-san. Grats on gettin' through." Another year, presumably. Is that really an appropriate thing to congratulate...?

    ... honestly, it might be, they've had a lot going on.

    Tsubasa grabs some snacks, of course. They also snag a pig's ear they brought over for Lance, so she'll have a snack-slash-toy to gnaw on, too.

<Pose Tracker> Ryuji Sakamoto has posed.

Ryuji looks at Makoto's fear with a mix of confusion and mild amusement. "Isn't being scared kinda the point of Halloween?" He cares but he also finds being scared of stuff when there were scary things like paying rent, yakuza...Ryuji's eyes drift over to Tsubasa again and he shudders. Maybe being scared of that one was understandable.

 "Heh. I'm fine. Just getting into character." Ryuji poses again before laughing with Ren. "Heh...Hey, Happy Birthday, dude. Glad you're around."

 Ryuji grins at Tsubasa, returning the thumbs up. "Dude, I guess you're right but man I don't like scary clowns for some reason. I dunno, it feels off."

 Ryuji finds a place to sit, looking around at everyone's costume. "Man, this looks like Comiket." 

<Pose Tracker> Kasumi Yoshizawa has posed.

    Hehe, sorry, Makoto-senpai!! Will of Rebellion does pretty strange things, huh?~

    Kasumi claps with pleasure as Ryuji arrives as a Featherman. Very cute! She sees a new side of the unflappable student council president too, and she giggles. "Very cute, Niijima-senpai..." It makes being surrounded by a ton of her Senpais not so intimidating.

    "Woah! Very well done, Kitagawa-san!" Kasumi claps her hands in admiration. "It's very subtle, but I can see effort put into the headband and everything!" As Haru enters, Kasumi is briefly thankful she couldn't see the glint of real metal on the axe. "Good evening, Sister! Hehe, that's so cute..."

    Ann arrives, classy as always, but the reference is lost on her. (She's a Dragon Quest girlie, sorry!) But the dedication is clear... " Ren introduces her to the group and Kasumi stands to offer a little bow. "Thank you for having me, everyone! I appreciate the invite.~"

    "Nice to meet you too, Kawase-san!" Kasumi offers a little bow. "I've heard a bit about you from Sakamoto-senpai."

    Tsubasa greets Kasumi, who gets tripped up on what 'natural pronouns' means. She can't find a time to question it, as Lance nuzzles into her hands. "A-ah, yes! I do. I just left the Flower Tact is just at home. I didn't have time to paint it in the right colour, so..." It was still in red Blossom Mode, rather than Marine.

    Kasumi looks towards the stack of DvD cases and attempts to read through the titles. "Oooh, that's a pretty solid list, huh? What are we watching first?~"

<Pose Tracker> Makoto Niijima has posed.

    Cats don't usually have very scary, big budget horror movies about them!

    Not for another seven years, anyway...

    "I do," Makoto admits with a smile. "I'm still glad that that thing last night was so ridiculous..." She does look a little awkward when Ren opens their arms for her, given it's, you know, in front of everyone... Not that that was a problem in Crossroads. Still, Makoto does move a little closer for a smaller hug, given Ren enough room to put one arm around her. Maybe she's just trying not to repeat the freakout in the Sakura's house.

    On the upside, Ann swings in and pounces Ren aggressively and that gives Makoto *just* enough of a chance to duck out of the way of the impressive and terrifying sorceress and her spiky cape holder... "Ah, Ann, be careful!" It's a very sharp costume.

    Ichika just gets a chance to laugh at Makoto though- and Kasumi finds it cute? "Yoshizawa-san..." Is... Is Kasumi just naturally good at teasing? Makoto crosses her arms and frowns a little-

    Fortunately, they're distracted by Tsubasa's comment on her outfit. "Thanks! I was a little stuck for a costume but I remembered that Maximum Madness movie with the nameless rider?" She raps on the elbow pad. "Plus, this is all real riding gear. I spent a bit more than I normally would, but I'm gonna need it when I finally have a real bike." ...wait, what?

    Weirdly, Makoto is not at all bothered by Ann lavishing attention on her datemate. A healthy approach to jealousy, maybe? Trust of Ann? I mean, they are all friends and Ann's known Ren longer. And enough people got the wrong (and eventually right) opinion of her and Ren for their closeness. It would be weird to push.

    Instead, she has Haru the creepy nun sneak up behind her, and Makoto turns rapidly with a little jump because unfortunately, spooky things *are* happening and Haru does a very good creepy creepy nun with a very warm smile. Makoto is frozen for a second, mostly because gosh she went all out with that blood but also gosh it's Haru. "Th-thanks, Haru. Your costume is... really impressive too." Makoto does look a bit flushed now, but it IS a crowded attic.

    Still, this gives her a break to reach into her bag and pull out a small, fancy gift bag from...

    37 Degrees Celsius, the Accessory Store?? Makoto went to a fashion shop? Willingly????

    Maybe Tsubasa and Ann can get her to care about fashion after all!

    Makoto shoots Ryuji a look. "A little scared, sure, I guess," Makoto says, but she looks a little uncomfortable. "This is my first year actually taking part in a party though, normally I'd just stay in." Her Dad wasn't a fan, and... honestly, the idea of being out at night when Halloween started becoming big in Japan didn't really appeal. Even though Dad would be at work, and Sae would be out with her friends after Makoto went to bed. "I'm kind of new at this."

    Yusuke also gets a little bit of a wide berth from Makoto, for reasons that might be obvious to some people here. In general though, she's leaning towards the 'non-scary' end of the costume people to be with, even if Yusuke's is simple it's still a yurei!! "Please tell me this isn't your first meal of the day, Yusuke..."

    Kasumi's seeming confusion causes Makoto to go into explanation mode, well in her comfort zone. "It means we use 'they' or 'them' for Tsubasa-kun, instead of 'he' or 'she'." ...Though, had Ren told Kasumi about their own pronouns? Makoto had assumed, because she's here, after all...

    Also Ann has decided to rip the bandaid off the socially tricky part, and Makoto smiles to Ren. "Happy Birthday, Ren. I know it's short notice, but I hope it's a good Halloween for you." *Now* she can open the cake box, that everyone is here. The cake itself is an expertly made Gateau Opera, with layers of almond cake, chocolate ganache, and coffee buttercream, layered with care. The scent wafts off it easily. "I hope it's alright, I tried to pick some flavours I knew you liked. It's from a French bakery in Kagurazaka, 'Patisserie Kurayama'." Tokyo's own little Paris has some good stuff, apparently. "You've got a knife, right? It looks pretty delicate..." 

<Pose Tracker> Yusuke Kitagawa has posed.

"Happy birthday, Ren-nyan," Yusuke says, in turn. The attempt at turning the honorific into a pun might be a bit clunky, but he hopes the spirit of it is appreciated.

"It's quite varied," he agrees with Ryuji. "There is a lot to appreciate in every outfit, from the attention to detail to colours and contrasts, to the chosen theme."

... it's kind of a lot, to be honest, but at least it's connected enough to his special interests that he can enjoy it.

"Oh, yes." He gets up to head over to where he draped his jacket, pulling a tarot-sized card case out of it. "I made you a gift."

It is indeed a tarot-sized card, depicting the silhouette of a teenage figure with a familiar, if stylized, hair style, removing glasses midstride to look up at a crimson sky in which a hollow moon hangs. (Or a stylised 0, if we're being specific.) 

<Pose Tracker> Haru Okumura has posed.

"If you really are just a cat..." Haru taps her (still 'bloodsoaked') cheek. "I suppose you wouldn't understand it if I said 'happy birthday'?" She tilts her head. "Hehe. Really, best wishes, Ren-kun. I'm just glad we could all spend it together!" She smiles, more genuinely, rather than the sinister one she'd been putting on for the bit.

"Actually, it's not much but I did get you a little something~ Some coffee beans and flowers, straight out of the garden! I hope you like them." A tiny hint of pink flushes through her white makeup just a bit, but knowing full well Ren and Makoto are lucky to have each other, she doesn't make that known. "In flower languages, yellow roses represent a budding friendship. I hope that friendship continues between us all for a long time to come." She smiles.

Haru can understand Ishika's aversion to nuns, considering what she's been through. Thankfully a scary nun with a giant axe is probably different enough. "Ehehe. Thank you! I'm sure I'll need it to exorcise a demon such as yourself~" She winks. Tsubasa joins in on the conversation, then, and Haru laughs. "If all is well, there won't be any need for fire tonight, right?"

Speaking of fire, Haru finds herself really impressed by Ann's costume, too. "Wow... I'm not familiar with the costume, but you look incredible, Ann-chan!" She even went so far as to get contacts... but unfortunately Haru has her blind spots with references.

Haru giggles as Kasumi calls her sister. "Hello there, Cure Marine~ or should I say Sumi-chan?" Haru waves to Kasumi, having coming up with a nickname for the red-haired girl since the last time they really spoke at Kazusa's Atelier. "I'm glad you could make it." She smiles. "I love the costume. Magical girls are just so inspirational, aren't they?"

Haru's warm, genuine smile narrows just a little as she sees how thoroughly she shocked her poor friend. "Hehe, I'm sorry to ambush you, Mako-chan." Haru smiles. "I'm a little surprised that I could make the costume so convincing just by being myself." She admits. "Fortunately, you play your own role quite well, too." She smiles.

"I like your costume too, Yusuke-kun. I think your artistry really shines through!" Haru takes in the haunting figure of a yurei. Maybe it fits him a little too well. " 

<Pose Tracker> Ann Takamaki has posed.

Ann is the most friendliest evil sorceress there could ever be. Look at how she proudly beams when Haru compliments her!

"Thanks, senpai!"

And beams EVEN BRIGHTER when --

Last Saga 8, right?

--someone recognizes her game!!

"Hee hee, yup!" Ann Kramer - Edea Takamaki?? - strikes a pose, tongue stuck out and hand flashing a v-sign and everything. It looks just slightly at odds with her imposing, sorcerous visage. Just _slightly_.

"Last Saga 8 was so my favorite when I was a kid! I played it twice, back to back! I had to kinda sneak around my caretaker to do it, though... eheh..." Ann looks very proud that she accomplished this feat of staying up past her bed time to binge on video games. Look -- she was basically pulling heists! What's not to be proud of!

Still, the matter of the mythological origins of Lance...'s costume is commanding the lion's share of Ann's attention right now. Which swiftly gets derailed by Tsubasa's correction. "Oh!" she says, with widening yellow eyes. "Well, she's still totally adorable! And super fierce." And here, she crouches (as best she can (tighter dresses like this are not great for maneuverability)) and offers a warm smile Lance's way.

"Aren't you? Why yes you are, you are the fiercest, with the most badass name~" croons Ann, with overflowing affection. "And you're just the most intimidating Orthrus I ever saw even if you have three heads -- wait what?" She blinks. Lips purse. She looks to Tsubasa. Back to Lance. Tsubasa. Lance.

"Soooo... she's not Orthrus." Cerberus can have multiple heads?? Is the Metaverse LYING to her? Who would do that, just go on the Metaverse and LIE?!

"Huh." Her head tilts. "Yeeeah there's no way anything's staying on that tail."

This is her key takeaway from this entire exchange. Because of course it is.

"But it's the most precious tail ever--!"

She'll lavish Lance in a bit more attention before said attention shifts towards the others. The conversation on clowns, at least, has her piping up:

"There's this really good Western clown horror called It's" look you try to come up with a better alternative to It "about kids fighting an evil clown in the sewers. It's soooooo scary." She pouts, just a little. "I didn't bring it with me, though. It's a miniseries, so it would be a little too long... but the British actor who plays the clown is so good! I think his name was Tom Chili!"

Yeah. There we go.

"Oh, I love magical girl shows so much. They always had some of the coolest villains..."

...

w-well--

Hey! Movies! "Huh? O-oh, yeah, thanks," says Ann with mild surprise as Ren makes their offer, having briefly forgot she was holding that daunting stack of movies while she was fantasizing about magical girl villainesses. "Here, uh... this one at the top first." And here, she hands over The Stack, wiping her clawed hands with a satisfied look. "--Hm? Oh, yeah! They have cosmetic contacts for all kinds of things or looks. It's big in the cosplay scene. I've actually used them sometimes for my modeling gigs, thooouuugh most of the time they want me with my natural eye color."

It's that exotic look, she doesn't feel like specifying. Instead, she just grins, and flashes a wink over her shoulder at Kasumi.

"We're watching the greatest movie of all time, first -- The Mummy!"

The Mummy does not get a cheeky rename. Nor do any of the characters.

It's a universal constant and everyone will just have to deal with that. 

<Pose Tracker> Ren Amamiya has posed.

    Morgana is indeed beginning to bristle in addition to wither--so when Ichika tells him that gentlemen can be cute, and Tsubasa reiterates that Ren's the only cat they see here, that also helps mollify him. "I would be the cutest gentleman around," he says loftily. "Maybe next year!"
    
    They do pick up on Makoto's awkwardness before she lets them give her a small hug. They don't linger, though they're momentarily confused. Sure, they agreed to keep it discreet at first, but the last couple of days were anything but. That's not something to discuss right now, though, and they have no intention of making her uncomfortable. Ann's pounce-hug makes it a moot point, anyway; she and her costume ENTIRELY fill their arms, at least until she leaves again.
    
    Ren's cheeks aren't visible under the face paint (the water will just have to dry on its own), but if they were, everyone would see them flushing a pleased pink as the birthday wishes pile in. "I'm glad you're all here too," they murmur to Ichika and Ryuji. They chuckle at Tsubasa; making it through this year is definitely an appropriate thing to congratulate. That chuckle gets louder as Yusuke cat-ifies their suffix, and they wave a cat-paw at him too. Haru teasingly wonders if a cat like them wouldn't understand, and Ren just grins and meows again.
    
    Makoto's gift bag is accepted with care. An accessory, or is this a red herring of a bag? Before they can verify, Yusuke offers them a hand-drawn gift, which Ren looks over with a smile that soon broadens into a grin. "It looks extremely cool. Thanks, Yusuke," they say, looking up. "I especially like the moon stylized into a zero."
    
    Coffee beans and yellow roses--two excellent gifts. Ren accepts them from Haru gratefully when she hands them over. "I can't wait to grind these up for a cup. Thank you, Haru," they say warmly. They'll have to find a better place to put the roses, not having a vase, but for now they get a place of honor in the center of the shelves next to their bed.
    
    Ann hands over The Stack. This might not be the greatest time for that, but Ren asked for it, it's fine. The Mummy is on top, so that at least is easy enough to bring over to the TV and push into the DVD player slot. They smile over their shoulder as Ann, Kasumi, and Haru gush over magical girls. One of their favorite magical girls is that one holy phantom thief who soars through the sky, St. Trails... Maybe next year, that's who they'll cosplay.
    
    "Understandable. Your blue eyes already stand out--in a good way," they reply. "Must be fairly easy to recolor with contacts, too." As opposed to very dark eyes like their black ones.
    
    As the DVD starts to run, Makoto opens up the cake box, and they lean over to breathe in the scent. It's not a typical birthday cake, and that's exactly why they love it. "There's plenty downstairs. Thank you, Makoto. It looks delicious," they say warmly.
    
    When Kasumi looks confused by 'neutral pronouns' and Makoto takes point on explaining that, Ren is reminded. "Oh, yeah--Tsubasa's X-gender. So am I," they tell Kasumi, casual as you please. "You can keep using he/him for me, though. I'm OK with any pronouns."
    
    They slip over to their bed, where they'll then take the time to open up Makoto's gift and Ichika's, which they snag from the table. Someone will need to press play; someone who picks a seat closer to the TV will have to do that. There's no hurry, though. Cake and snacks await first! 

<Pose Tracker> Ichika Kawase has posed.

"Super fierce," Ichika chimes in of Lance. And then--"Probably me," she says of the fire, and grins toothily at Haru, next. "You probably will! I'm a tough demon."

Nuns make her nervous! ...Specifically Christian nuns, for some reason. It's a mystery.

Ryuji doesn't like scary clowns... that's a pity. Because Ichika thinks it's great!

Kasumi is very cute, too. But she's heard of her from Ryuji? "Oh, yeah? Hopefully more than just that I'm hot and beat up punks."

Ichika ddoes laugh at Makoto, but it's good natured. "Ohh, you're going for a real one?" she asks of the bike. "Super cool. We can get out on the road together!"

A van is not as cool as a bike, but it carries more people!

"I love Halloween parties," Ichika says. She doesn't tell the story about the last one she planned, though--that's Eiji talk, and she doesn't want to bring things down.

"Oh, that cake looks great..."

And Yusuke has a beautiful card to share. "Yellow roses," she finally comments to Haru. "I like that idea."

But Ann played it--that much?? "Nice," Ichika says. "I just watched my brother play it, but I thought it was super great."

Movies!! Ichika would be glad to watch, though she doesn't answer about the contacts because she has a feeling she knows why they mostly want Ann's natural color. Not like Ichika's natural color, which is the very ordinary-in-Japan red. what? Don't worry about it.

But maybe next year, Morgana says. "Right!"

She smiles at Tsubasa and Ryuji both after a moment, and will arrange a seat with both of them. She doesn't step in on pronouns; instead, she's certainly not presing play...

When Ren opens her box: it's a few carefully-packed eyeliner pencils of colors that would suit Ren; it's a high-end brand that Ichika uses that might be out of reach of the makeup budget usually. 

<Pose Tracker> Ryuji Sakamoto has posed.

Ryuji nods in agreement with Yusuke. "Yeah, I see what you mean I think..."

 Sakamoto just kinda stares at Ann's very intricate costume. He isn't quite sure what she's from, despite hearing her say the actual title. All he can offer is a thumbs up and a "cool costume". Such a poet this one.

 "The Mummy? That thing with all the bandages from the place with the pyramids? Isn't that a little too soon?" Ryuji isn't fighting this battle too hard but he still has flashbacks to that blazing heat.

 Ryuji looks over at Kasumi's costume and nods, not really wanting to reveal he knows what she's dressed as. Instead, another thumbs up.

 Ryuji finds his place next to Ichika and Tsubasa. 

<Pose Tracker> Tsubasa Seki has posed.

    Ryuji relates his fear of clowns, and Tsubasa, straight-faced, reaches up to their red nose...

    ... and...

    HONK.

    Ruthless.

    Kasumi looks a little lost about their pronouns, but luckily, Makoto has an explanation before Tsubasa has to educate. "Yeah," they nod, to her, instead, and flash a thumbs-up to Ren as they add their own truth in beside theirs. "That's cool," they assure Kasumi, hearing about her wand. "It's in the shop. It happens."

    Wands aren't cars, Tsubasa...

    "Better take me on a run," they add, to Makoto, when she mentions she's about to get her bike licence. "That shit is cash."

    But then -- something clicks in their head -- and they turn to Yusuke. "Ren-nyan..."

    They echo, a touch stunned. "... Ren-nyan..." And, quietly: "... that's so cute..."

    What? It's not cool or tough to be struck by a thematic honourific being cute??? Shut up.

    "Oh, sweet, you grew those yaself?" They ask, turning to Haru. "I heard coffee's a real pain in th' ass to grow... nice work." Where would Tsubasa have heard gossip about gardening? Don't worry about that. "Guess if you're that good, we oughta worry 'bout those fires... better be on good behaviour."

    Beat.

    "Mostly," Tsubasa adds, with a glance to Ryuji, who they definitely have not stopped giving a hard time. (It's how they show affection.)

    Lance is totally willing to hop up and help Ann with the very important task of petting her. 'BORK,' she comments, happily, tail wagging harder at those compliments. "Lance is into it," Tsubasa translates. "Damn, ain't them Last Saga games long as shit?" They ask, impressed. "I played Drake Adventure," which ought to activate Kasumi, who is, as she says, a Drake Adventure Girlie, "when I was at Officer Shimizu's joint, but I don't even reckon I got halfway through while I was there..."

    Tsubasa does grin, though, rubbing at the back of their neck. "Well, I ain't read much on Orthus, so I dunno if that one can have three heads or not. Maybe she could be Orthus too." They contemplate that tail which never stops moving, though, and nod, gravely. "Too right."

    Ann knows about what horror clowns are in the West, too, and Tsubasa blinks. "Huh, yeah? Oughta look that shit up." Today's cultural crossover, of course... is the Mummy.

    Before sitting down with Ichika and Ryuji, though, they take a second to divert over to Ren's bed to drop something off -- which quite literally just amounts to walking over, handing over a fancy little cloth gift bag, throwing out an aside comment of, "reckon they're themed to genders good enough," and leaving. What's in the bag? Why, three pins, nominally the kind that boys wear on their uniforms to be fancy: a pink one with some ribbon-like thematics, a blue one with sharp edges, and a green one which seems vaguely clover-themed.

    You know. It's a way to subtly indicate what gender they're feeling without having to wear stuff which is too blatantly female-coded in public.

    "Yeah, man," they say, as they plonk themself down beside Ichika, and look over to Ryuji, having heard him protest that this is too soon. "It's like, research."

    Dear God, this is research???

AS: Ren Amamiya has readied for combat as Arsène! He is now fully healed!
AS: Ann Takamaki has readied for combat as Carmen! She is now fully healed!

<Pose Tracker> Kasumi Yoshizawa has posed.

    The sweet ones can be devious, Makoto-senpai. Especially the sweet ones, depending on how one looks at it.

    And thankfully, Makoto is able to explain what 'neutral pronouns' meant. Kasumi takes a moment to process this, and suddenly a connection clicks. "Oh! Sort of like Kamikawa Aya-san?" She looks visibly relieved after making the connection. (She is, of course, referencing the first openly transgender to win elected office back in 2003.) "She made an appearence on Good Morning Japan a while back..." Whew, that makes sense!

    Then, Ren comes out to her and an exclaimation mark seems to pop over Kasumi's head. "Oh!!" That's a rurpise... This is so tricky! Still, she finger writes something on the palm of her hand. "Noted! Thank you for telling me, Senpai!"

    Kasumi giggles along with Haru. "It's good to see you again, Okumura-senpai!" The nickname does get Kasumi to blush a fair bit. "Thank you! I love Halloween, I've had this costume prepared for a while." Mostly! The wand didn't make it in time. Inspirational? Hmmm. "I suppose so." A bit of an awkward beat. She sorta wishes she had a Cure Blossom with her.

    "The villians? Hmmm..." Kasumi has to consider this for a moment. She's rather partial to the heroes... "I can see that, Takamaki-senpai.~ They are pretty cool!" What can she say? She likes cheering people on.

    The Mummy! "I don't think I've seen that one before... I'm looking forward to it.~" Admittedly, Kasumi's neither partial either way on horror. She's seen a fair few, but not much beyond that.

    "Too soon?" Kasumi notes on Ryuji's groan on it. "Ooh, are the Thieves robbing a pyramid this time...?" She smiles, remembering that Egyptology book she and her sister had.

    "Exactly, Seki-san." Kasumi says with a laugh. It might not be a car, but it was rather silly of her to forget to paint it... Strange how that works, huh? Drake adventure though-her eyes light up. "Hehe. That's an RPG for you. I think there's some shorter games out there?"

<Pose Tracker> Makoto Niijima has posed.

    "Yeah," Makoto nods to Ichika. "I figured... well. I've wanted my license for a while, and I've been saving up but I know Sis'll freak. But since we went for that drive it's been on my mind. Having your own transport gives you some more freedom." ...Not to mention how good it feels to ride Johanna. It would be nice to feel some of that with the wind in her hair.

    Tsubasa wants to join for a spin and Makoto blinks, and nods. "Sure. It'll be a while before I get it, and I need to get my full license before I can have passengers, but that sounds good!" Sure she keeps letting people hitch rides on Johanna but Johanna's sentient and nuclear powered. She's special, and doesn't require a license for Makoto to ride recklessly.

    Makoto does feel a little anxious at Ann invoking the name of the movie. "And it's definitely more of action movie, right...?" She knows Ann said it was in Futaba's palace but. Well. The last time she went into a movie completely blind just based on the name it was an experience.

    "I-it's fine, really," Makoto stammers, a little awkwardly at Haru's 'ambush'. "Sorry, I guess I'm a little jumpy, Ichika's costume really reminded me of that movie we went to..." But that was just too girls who are friends going to a movie, of course. Purely that. Of course, Haru compliments her playing her role. "Ah, thank you! It was kind of a spur of the moment decision," backed by lots of prior research. "Yours looks really good on you, too!"

    Fortunately, Ren saves Makoto from her famous foot in mouth syndrome by telling her where the knives. "I'll get it," Makoto offers- it's Ren's birthday, and she's been to LeBlanc enough to work it out. "Do you think Sakura-san would mind if we borrowed some plates and forks too? I can wash them up after we're done." It is a nice cake, it would be a shame to eat it with just their hands. Either way, as she starts to head downstairs again, Makoto does look back to the group. "Uh, can we leave some light on up here, until the movie starts at least? I don't want to risk tripping over anyone while carrying a knife." That's a believable enough excuse, at least.

    The few seconds downstairs are, at least, a few good minutes to focus again. For all that's all their friends, it's a lot of people- though if someone offers to help carry things, Makoto won't object.

    It does mean that she's coming up back in time to see Ren sitting down on the bed with her gift, and she smiles placing the cutlery and crockery as acquired down on the crowded snack table to watch Ren. The gift bag is not, in fact a red herring. Inside it's a simple gift- because what is Makoto's taste but simple, yet effective. It's a white, wide hairband- no patterns, nothing fancy, very practical- with a few discreet parts of looped fabric. Great for keeping unruly hair in line. With it, though, are a few small enamel hair clips that could attach to those fabric loops. The designs are again, simple- a silver snowflake, a dark green feather like design and a black top-hat. She hopes they like them, at least.

    It's then that Makoto moves to cutting the cake- evenly, carefully, and shifting it to plates so everyone has a slice- given how everyone's here, there's just enough to go around with a slice or two to spare. (...She may have forgotten to cut one for Morgana. In her defense, cats shouldn't have chocolate and she doesn't know how that applies to people trapped in cat form.)

    "The last time you were doing research I recall being dragged through half the stores in Konan Seaside Mall," Makoto says, a little dryly. Look. The fashionventure was rough on her poor, sheltered self. ...also she needs to tease someone back here or everyone will realize she's the world's easiest target and that must not be allowed.

    "It's... kind of like that," Makoto agrees, as she looks to the X-Gender people in the room, they'd be more positioned to confirm than Makoto is. "But not exactly." She's trying her best, at least! Still, the next thing Kasumi says causes Makoto's eyes to widen briefly, before looking around the room carefully. "No comment," Makoto says firmly- to everyone. The fact that she's looking most intently at Ann, Tsubasa and Ryuji is *surely* a coincidence.

    With the cutting done, she now moves to sit next to Ren on the bed, with their cakes, and hands theirs to them. "...I thought it might go with the kimono," Makoto whispers, just in case Ren doesn't want to show that to everyone yet, even if she's making strides. "I uh... did have to have the attendant help with picking, so I hope they're okay. I just found that hairbands are good with bad hair days."

    As if to demonstrate, Makoto slyly reaches to brush her hair to one side, and in the process tap her French braid with her fingernail- with a subtle 'tink' sound coming off it.

    "Okay, are we ready?" Makoto asks, but she's not the one who's going to be standing up to press play. 

<Pose Tracker> Haru Okumura has posed.

Haru feels relief wash over her as Ren accepts her gift. "Of course! Please feel free to let me know how they taste. I really hope you enjoy them." She smiles, warmly. "It, um... took a fair bit of effort to make sure you didn't see them during our gardening sessions." She adds, with a laugh.

"Flower language really is something isn't it?" Haru agrees with Ichika. "I think it's wonderful that there's a flower for any situation." To Tsubasa, she nods, when they take interest in her gardening. "Thank you! Yes... it wasn't easy. I'd still consider myself a novice, even now.. and the soil in Japan isn't usually well suited for coffee beans." Still, she finally felt confident to gift some of her own handiwork. "Are you interested in gardening too, Tsubasa-san?" She follows up.

Haru certainly looks excited when it's time to put in their first film of the night, The Mummy. "Oooh, I can't wait! American horror movies are so exciting..." Haru clasps her hands together. As for Ryuji's comments... "That's right. Perhaps it'll be an educational experience for next time?" Who knows, they might yet fight an actual mummy in one of these Palaces.

"Halloween is wonderful, isn't it? It can be fun to dress up as someone else entirely, even if it's just for a little while." Haru agrees, with Kasumi's liking for Halloween. Does she know?

"It does," Haru agrees, that Ishika's costume looked straight out of SMILE. "So in a way, seeing it brought back fond memories.~" She smiles again to Makoto, as creepy as her makeup must make it look. Just two friends seeing a movie together! "Well, it suits you very well. Like you're some kind of action hero!" Knowing how strong Makoto really is, she couldn't see it any other way. 

<Pose Tracker> Ann Takamaki has posed.

The Stack delivered, Ann returns to lavishing Lance with pet-based affection right up until the point that Ren addresses her again.

Her eyes already stand out, says Ren, and Ann straightens again to rub the back of her neck with one hand. "Oh! Err. Thanks!" For someone who very nearly dyed her hair and contemplated wearing contacts just to avoid standing out, having those looks complimented - by someone who ISN'T trying to skeev on her - is still something Ann is getting used to. It does make her happy to hear, though, if the way she sways back and forth in that telltale way is any indication--

"Ow! ... I forgot I had claws..."

Up until the point she remembers the importance of not rubbing your neck with WITCH CLAWS.

Cool costume.

Thumbs up!

Ann Takamaki, in the middle of wincing at her own self-scratch mishap to turn a laser-eyed focus upon Ryuji. "Ryuji, have you... never played a Last Saga game?!"

Yes, this is what she chooses to focus on, this entirely intuited thing that has nothing to do with Ryuji's uncertain compliment. "That's so unacceptable! I've got, like, most of the recent ones -- um, do you have a Baestation? You're gonna need a Baestation."

And so, this is Sorceress Ann, inflicting her nefarious agenda on her eternal nemesis, Featherman Ryuji. There will be no escape from this.

"Oh, ummm. They're kindaaaa long -- but the stories are seriously good. And so romantic! Drake Adventure's pretty fun, too. But they're only like. Eighty hours, if you do everything? So it's not that bad!"

n o e s c a p e

With everything - relatively - taken care of, though, Ann opens up her purse (did the Sorceress have a purse? whatever, some things have to be sacrificed for practicality), pulls out a package wrapped in black with a red ribbon, and wordlessly sets it on the LeBlanc countertop, for Ren to spy whenever their attention is drawn to it. She doesn't want to make a particularly big deal about it; it's why she says nothing, and instead just glides with ridiculous grace and ease in such a restrictive dress towards closest available seat she can find, moving first to sit sideways on it before comfortably repositioning herself once she's actually gotten onto the seat.

Modeling: does wonders for learning how to maneuver in ornate, restrictive clothing by necessity.

"... Ugh, I shoulda removed the doohickies first..."

You know. Mostly.

Regardless, Ann is beaming and offering Makoto a wink and a thumbs up later. "Definitely mostly action!" she assures (?). "You're going to love it. Trust me, I'm totally in-tune to this kinda thing."

She sounds very confident about this. So that's a plus. Probably. But that confidence evaporates when Ryuji talks about desert-movies being too soon.

"Ryuji! Exnay on the essert-day!" she says, firmly, in a way that will assuredly not arouse suspicion. "Besides, it's the movie that inspired all this! We gotta watch it first!"

Ann is having no ifs, ands, or buts about this. The deed is done. The die is cast.

It is time.



When Ren gets around to opening that modest package, they'll find stylish, sleek black container with a latch-open. Inside?

A set of handmade makeup brushes of every shape and size.

Every tool someone would need to start seriously exploring the world of makeup. 

<Pose Tracker> Ren Amamiya has posed.

    Upon opening the wrapper with one claw, Ren grins at Ichika's gift, and meets her eyes briefly to shoot her a mouthed 'thank you.' They're not familiar with make-up brands yet, but these look sharp, and most importantly, they come in bold colors and dark colors like crimson and black. The latter will be great for experimenting more with the smoky look Ann recommended for them.
    
    They flash a thumbs-up back to Tsubasa. Enbies unite! ...Tsubasa sparkling over how cute 'Ren-nyan' only gets a bigger grin. It might've been thanks to Yusuke, but that's plenty gift from Tsubasa all on its own. They bring them an actual gift too, though, and they admire the pins in the cloth bag. No need to explain the logic; with that aside-comment, they understand it intuitively, and give Tsubasa a nod of gratitude.
    
    When they honk their nose at Ryuji, that's just the cherry on top. Ren snort-laughs into one hand (paw).
    
    That smile rolls back into something more casual and congenial as things click for Kasumi. Her thanks get a nod of thanks in return--for being so understanding. Good thing her dad runs a TV show. "It's close enough," they reassure Makoto, though they pause and glance at Tsubasa. "...Well, for me, at least. Tsubasa might feel differently." They look back at Kasumi. "It can be complicated, but you get the gist."
    
    Riding with Makoto on a motorcycle in the real world... If it's anything like last night, it'll be one hell of a thrill ride. Ren'll let Tsubasa call dibs, but they're looking forward to that too.
    
    "It helps that I don't know what coffee plants look like," Ren admits to Haru. Still: "You did a great job. I didn't suspect at all." She's shaped up into a fine thief!
    
    "Not at all. We can both wash them later," they tell Makoto. They're grateful enough that she's getting the knives and plates and such; they won't let her clean up all by herself too. The request gets a nod. "Don't worry, I'll make sure they stay on 'til you get back."
    
    They know the real reason why she's asking--and why certain costumes made her so jumpy. They of course do not betray this. They also let Makoto's firm 'No Comment' stand with a sage nod in agreement.
    
    Their eyebrows rise when Ann reveals the scope of how much she is actually a big ol' gamer. Ren is too to an extent, but mostly just for visual novels like Heartful Birdfriend and simple, straightforward games, not one of those RPG epics with ten million sidequests. Granted, a retro console is all they're able to afford right now so their pickings are slim, but still--eighty hours is 'not that bad'??
    
    Ann's gift is presented subtly, and Ren appreciates it. They don't dislike their birthday by any means, but they do have trouble asking for attention, and Ann not making a big deal of it (especially compared to the TACKLE HUG earlier) makes it easier for them too. For the moment, they flash her a smile of gratitude that might well be confused as a wordless response to her own words of thanks. When they open it later, they truly appreciate that sleek black case and the many, many make-up brushes within. These are going to be wonderfully useful in the coming days.
    
    Makoto's gift, too, is lovely. It figures the bag is as straightforward as she is; it also figures that the headband and the hair clips suit their new kimono perfectly. "They're beautiful. I love 'em," they whisper to Makoto, accepting the cake from her as their dark eyes twinkle.
    
    This is jarred by a wholly startled look, complete with slack jaw, when Makoto taps her own headband. That wasn't a braid?! However, they recover a second or two later. "Sneaky. I'm impressed," they murmur. When the lights go out and the movie starts, they'll lean in to sneak a brief kiss...
    
    ...and if Makoto seems uncomfortable then too, at least no one saw this time--but Ren will remember. For now: the lights go out, and The Mummy shall proceed to haunt them all. 

<Pose Tracker> Makoto Niijima has posed.

    "Sounds good." Dishes are slightly easier with two, after all. Ren gets a warm smile Makoto- both for their discretion and their promise, before she ducks downstairs. She's... very appreciative of the way she doesn't have to say everything out loud with Ren.

    "I'm glad," Makoto says, and it's hard not to feel good about receiving that sort of look. It feels good to make someone else happy, especially on their birthday.

    And when Ren leans in for the kiss, Makoto accepts- even if she doesn't lean in the way she did before. But... it's not like every kiss will be like your first, right? Besides it'd be rude to not accept it now that there's a little privacy and after their reaction.

    And anyway, it's only about a half hour into the movie that she's started holding Ren's hand again. Holding it, not squeezing it so hard she might cut off circulation.

    Nevermind that that's when they start exploring the tomb...

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