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[julibahana]

"How do you feel?"

Juli felt anxious for Giorno, though she tried her best not to let it show. And true enough, her words came out sounding unworried and confident. Because even though she was concerned for Giorno, she knew that if there were anyone in this world who could help Jojo, it was him.

Comments

[buon_giorno]

“Better than the only woman I want to go with?”

[julibahana]

"Oh." Juli swallowed. "Well, then," she said more smoothly, with confidence, "I'd be happy to."

[buon_giorno]

“I’m glad,” Giorno said with an air of calm he certainly didn’t feel. “Of course…if you really had your heart set on someone else, then please don’t feel pressured.”

[julibahana]

"Well, actually... I had wanted to ask you."

[buon_giorno]

“Oh.”

When the baker came to proudly present his fresh batch of the salted rolls, a large sunflower rapidly sprouted from the earth in front of the bench and its unfurling leaves thwacked him full in the face.

[julibahana]

If it had been Giorno being thwaped by the flower, she wouldn't have been able to hold in her laughter. She just barely managed to hold it in after the baker was assaulted by the sunflower's leaves.

"Are you alright?"

[buon_giorno]

“Oh, sorry—“ When Giorno turned to assist, he was quickly struck in the face with a sunflower’s bulbous head erupting from the ground.

[julibahana]

That was enough to make Juli laugh. "Maybe I should be asking if you're okay," she said, setting a hand on Giorno's shoulder.

[buon_giorno]

Giorno blew a thick golden petal out of his mouth. There were a few more plastered to his cheek and wedged in the curls of his hair—all of which were clearly visible when he turned to grin at her.

“Sorry. That’s never happened before.”

The baker set a few rolls down and rushed back to his oven, clearly leery of more plants jutting from the ground.

[julibahana]

Juli wouldn't have been able to stop smiling if she wanted to.

"There, let me help you," she said, removing a few petals from his hair. "You know, gold really is your color."

[buon_giorno]

Juli had a great warmth but she wasn’t a touchy feely person. Perhaps it was shyness or a respect for peoples boundaries, but this was the first time she was touching him of her own accord and Giorno couldn’t be upset about it despite the embarrassment that brought it on.

“Thanks,” he began, plucking one of the smaller flowers that was leaning into his side. He hoped she wouldn’t hold it against him when he tucked it beside that strand of hair she liked to fiddle with above her ear. “But it’s lovelier against your dark hair.”

[julibahana]

Now it was Juli's turn to blush. She didn't know why but suddenly she felt so shy.

"Maybe you could make some for me to wear at the dance?"

[buon_giorno]

“You can count on me.”

[takeba]

"There's a lot of people here." Yukari had to admit that she was overwhelmed. There were plenty of towns and cities that she had navigated through in her search for anyone she knew, but they were a lot more spread out. And the people there just weren't terribly involved with one another. Especially if they all were from different worlds. "I don't know how you keep up."

[alteredfates_npc]

"I come from a farming village not that much bigger than this...y'know, the kind where everyone is in everyone else's business." Iris shrugged. "When I think of it like that, it becomes pretty easy. ...Not like you, huh? You've got a real city girl vibe."

[takeba]

"I haven't lived in a small town since I was a kid." Some people might argue that she still was a kid, but Yukari was sure that Iris was not going to be one of those people. "I've been living the city life for a long time."

[alteredfates_npc]

"Ah, I'm jealous. I've been dreaming of living in a big city ever since I was little. I was going to graduate and get a college scholarship and everything..." Iris clasped her hands together and sighed before returning to attention. "Well, it's on hold for now. My job is to show you around, new roomie! So, where do you want to start? You've seen the residential areas, so...there's the main hall, the farmlands, the workshops, the training grounds, the hot springs, the schoolhouse--that's my domain--the amphitheater, the grove, the bakery, the bar..."

[takeba]

"Why not show me your favorite place, then?"

[alteredfates_npc]

Iris tucked a curly red strand of her back into her thick patterned hair wrap, humming loudly in thought.

"Well...that changes depending on the day. Right now? It's actually the schoolhouse." She leaned in with a smirk and clear blush on her cheeks. "I got some, um, really capable help recently. He took over for me today since I'd be showing you around...look, no matter how wild this place gets, there's no shortage of guys to look at. I swear."

[takeba]

"Oh? What's he like?" Yukari hadn't neglected to notice the wide array of attractive guys around. They were all pretty hard to miss.

[alteredfates_npc]

"His name's Caesar. Tall. Muscular. Italian. So charming. If I never make it out of this place I'm gonna marry him." She said it easily, starting down the path to the schoolhouse with an extra spring in her step. "You know, that's the kinda nice thing about being here...a lot of young people. There weren't that many back home. Even the council is over half made of up other teenagers. You've met 'em all, right?"

[takeba]

"I met one of them. Zelda? I think that was her name." She seemed nice enough. "You'll have to introduce me to the others."

[alteredfates_npc]

"Ah, yes. The Princess. ...It's not just a cute nickname. She's a literal princess. And, like, a crazy smart, too. This place was like totally 14th century before she started doing her thing. You're lucky you saw her first...she's pretty hard to pin down, especially lately. Unless you're Commander Shepard or Chilchuck, I guess...if I had to sum her up it's like a mad scientist thing." Iris squinted as they arrived into the open square. "Juli's the easiest one to run into. Seriously, I do it like five times a day without trying. She's one of the most approachable people here, bless her heart."

[takeba]

An actual princess. Wow. She knows she shouldn't be shocked by anything at this point, but she hadn't run into actual royalty until now.

"So are you actually friends with any of them?"

[alteredfates_npc]

"Me?" Iris gestured at herself and laughed. "Nah."