When We Were Innocent;; Meeting 2/21

[Jiyu Simul Stamus]

It had been nearly a week since she had found the groups pharaoh missing and a huge pile of large black plumage in his absence. Jiyu had searched while sending out search parties, trying to find the male with a sense of desperation she didn't quiet understand since she had always thought he was reckless and callous for his position. Certainly, she cared because he was one of the group, but the urgency she made the search parties work with was just abnormal. Even if she refused to admit it to herself at the moment? The draconic calico feline knew that his absence left her as pharaoh, made her the leader of an entire group when until a few months ago she'd never been anymore than someone's guard dog. Jiyu had barely known how to make it look like she could preform her job as vizier, how to pretend she knew what she was doing. Now she had to do it for a new job not only in front of Roseblood but in front of all the other groups! There was just no way she could do this. Even as her head screamed doubt and pleas to retreat the female had a perfectly stoic expression, there was no escape for her.

Climbing to sit upon a throne as she watched her siblings do long ago the calico looked around the empty meeting room. At least until he returned, keeping things together until Sepiroth came back and took things back, she could do that. Breathing in deeply the three foot calico raised her wings full spread above her and roared loudly as she could to draw the attention of the rosebloods regardless of where they may be in the territory.

[Leigh]

[align=center][div style="width: 45%; text-align: justify; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: -1px; font-family: times new roman;"]♡ — Leigh was very new and still jumpy. The unicorn's skin crawled at the sound of the roar, snapping his head towards the source. Something's happening. Check it out. "Way ahead of you..." he mumbled back, setting off to the meeting room. Once the spindly legged unicorn arrived, he sat off to the side, chocolate gaze resting on Jiyu.

[Usagi Smallpaw]

Usagi limps in and lays down. it had been a while since she had been to a meeting and was very exited for this one.She was sad for Bai shi as seph had dissipated and now Master Jiyu was the pharaoh.If she was able to find a way for her legs to be fixed she would train and forever guard her and Bai

[teef]

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[color=#7E354D]BAI SHI
" my own illusion come to be "

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their trip had been cut painfully short, and they had returned in quite a hurry upon hearing the news that the former pharaoh of the rosebloods had disappeared. they had returned in the midst of a panic, unable to accept the news that the man that they had loved had gone missing. anguish in every movement, the giant oriental dragon took their smaller fox form, walking into the meeting.

[Jiyu Simul Stamus]

The gathering was small, but she was plenty alright with such a thing as it meant more members were working on finding him at the moment. Opening her large white wings the dracocat angled her head to look directly down at the gathered members, sweeping her emotionless gaze over them until she came to lay that empty gaze upon her own apprentice. "Everyone is aware that Sepiroth is missing." no one could change that fact, and the smallest part of her was starting to realize that nothing was going to change that, even if every fiber of her being refused to admit this made her pharaoh, in spite of her current actions. "It's an absence we all feel, but if we live in the absence we'll never progress, even towards finding him." if they ran themselves ragged to find him right away, even in the face of empty handed search parties, they'd wear the group out and risk destruction. "I have far from given up on locating him, but running ourselves into the ground will only result in nowhere to bring him home to." and having somewhere to return home, that was the most important thing.

She made her point, using words she didn't even recognize as her own, having mashed them together from several speeches she had heard in the past. "Bai Shi, I need you to come up here, second step away from the throne." having him in the crowd did no good, they had to be united now more than ever! Waiting for him to step forward she would continue. "I'd like to welcome Leigh and @ Kaida Sionnaigh to the group formally and thank Kaida for their recent help in weekly tasks." Once she finished that part if Bai had stepped up behind her she'd descended the stairs of the throne speaking as she did so. "Now, for the final event of this meeting, Usagi come forward. Bai Shi retrieve the sunflower from behind the throne and give it to her." she had gotten a npc to bring the flower there for her, so it would be ready for this precise event. "With this Sun Flower you are officially recognized as possessing the title of Guard within The Roseblood, even without full use of your legs you've stayed by the side of myself and Bai Shi fighting to overcome you're struggles from the moment you joined, proving your loyalty and perseverance in a way only someone worthy of being called Guard can." it was all just a mash up of things she heard before, Jiyu would have to see if they bought it as a presentable version of knowing what she was doing.

[Usagi Smallpaw]

What? Surely master Jiyu hadn't just told her...no she couldn't have. ..and yet there she was looking expectantly at her...no surely she meant someone else..could she mean her....she was looking like DIRECTLY at her so maybe...she had told Bai shi to join jer so maybe it wasn't bad? But what if she had called bai shi up there to punish her had she done something wrong? Of so she couldn't remember what she had thought she'd beend doing everything properly. After a minute of standing like a stupid mule she slowly and hesitantly walked up to stand in front of them. Jeezy she was shaking really bad oh she hoped she hadnt done anything to dissapoint them.she kneeled as much as it hurt her she kneeled. When Bai shi gave her the sunflower and jiyu explained everything she was dumbstruck again. Surely they had made a mistake. There were many more in the clan who were more qualified to be a guard. She was weak hell she couldn't even walk properly. All she could do was look up at Bai and Master Jiyu dumbfounded,all her inner thoughts and turmoil probably playing on her face like an open book. She was weak and afraid surely... surely it must have been some mistake...

[teef]

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[color=#7E354D]BAI SHI
" my own illusion come to be "

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pushing their own grief aside for the greater picture of the group, bai shi would slowly climb the steps, their old shoulder wound acting up again, judging by the silvery blood that seeped from cracks and the sore crusted edges of the sores. the sunflowers that they personally wore woven into their fur were drooping, dying or already dead.

standing at jiyu's side their feline-like eyes slid over her in thought before they wordlessly retrieved the aforementioned sunflower from behind the throne that sephiroth had once sat upon. they waited for usagi, descending the stairs to give her the flowers.

"you have done well, little sister." they murmured quietly, touching her ear with their nose. stepping back they waited until everyone calmed down before announcing, "it is time we look to training again. things have been silent on the Pitts side, but we need to stay aware. I will host more training soon, but I am also announcing that I am training Kimu personally. Kimu, please step forward."

[candorosa]

[align=center][div style="width:80%; text-align: justify; padding: 1px;"]Kimu dragged himself to the direction where the roar originated from. His weary green-blue gaze swept over the area before plopping down in a free space. Kimu twitched at the odd feeling that arose within him when he spotted Jiyu in Sephiroth's place. The real weight of the situation settled in his mind, slimy tendrils of helplessness rising within him.

Sephiroth was gone. His father was gone and Kimu hadn't been around to see it. His sudden disappearance only brought questions that Kimu didn't think he wanted answered. The cub had spent restless nights coming up with different scenarios, some positive and some...not so positive. He spent mornings grasping and clinging to whatever hope he could muster. There was a reason for everything, he reasoned. He trusted Jiyu and so had his father, evidently, so if she said she wasn't going to stop her search then he believed her.

Kimu watched the promotions with a tired smile, one that he could be seen wearing more and more. He didn't recognize some of the names called except for Bai Shi's, so that was who he turned his head to. Kimu watched as they approached who he assumed was Usagi with weary but curious eyes. He opened his mouth to congratulate her then closed it with a soft sound when Bai Shi made a move to speak.

Kimu blinked. Then blinked again. Oh wow, he seriously wasn't expecting that. He kind of half-assumed that the older individual was just humoring him when they said they would be willing to train him. But this was great! Kimu's timid smile grew into something more cheery as he scrambled over to stand in front of Bai Shi. "A-Are you really going to train me?" The cub asked, unable to keep himself from blurting the words out. His excitement at the prospect was big enough to push his worries aside for now.

[teef]

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[color=#7E354D]BAI SHI
" my own illusion come to be "

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the loss of a parent was always painful, no matter the age, and the loss of a friend was just the same. bai shi knew the losses that kimu had to endure, and they worried for the cub as much as they worried for the others.

the training that they had brought up to him had been far from fake, they had wanted to protect him when they first saw him. when he was in front of them, they smiled and bowed their head, "I am going to train you, kimu. i have your father's blessing. and there is one last thing that i wish to ask you. would you, kimu, let me adopt you into my family until we can find your father?" they ask, feeling a sorrow in their chest, knowing that the silvery lion would not be found, for they knew how these situations turned out, having experienced too many of them.