The Reality Vortex: Red Reputations

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“Comfortable.” Lucifer answered Cuki’s question, fixated on her movements, facial expression, and delivery of her words. He observed the others, seeing the body language displayed in reaction to Cuki cheerfully asking them a question; notably Gogeta. “At least for me though, for the others. They made have some uncomfortable feelings considering the spectacle a couple of days ago.” Lucifer instigated the topic.
 
“I would not worry about Byakko anymore, Mr. Cross,” Zenta whispered. “He will be of no bother to us for a while. I will be able to sense and see his energy should he arise again. Rest assured the issue has been handled.”

“Eh, I’ve had better days Brachi,” Cuki replied. “And don’t worry about cleaning this up. You guys shouldn’t have to do any dirty work for now. Just worry about fixing this mess we’re all in.”

Cuki seemed to tilt her head to Bernkastel and lowered her gaze to the floor upon the Witch asking for her hand. She complied and held up her hand, which had a band-aid on the deeper wounds she did as a kitty. Most of it cleared up and barely anything was visible anymore. At first, she did not want to say anything but knowing Bernkastel’s character, she had to speak up.

“See? All better! Don’t worry about it. The past is behind me, for the most part. Just sit down and relax…” Her voice trailed off slightly.

“Cuki…” Zenta crossed his arms, glancing towards his student. “Did you forget the promise you made?”

“No…” Cuki mumbled. “Master, do I have to? Now?”

“The longer you hold it in, the more miscommunications there will be. The last thing you want is another incident of what happened.”

Cuki let out a sigh knowing that holding back a promise from her master was unavoidable. She walked next to Zenta and in view of everyone else. Her cheeks tinted red and puffed at how uncomfortable she felt. The girl stayed quiet before glancing up at her Master for guidance and met his smile. She paused before twiddling her fingers, a hard thump pounded within her chest from being so nervous. Glancing up to her Master once again, he nodded to her, which gave her the small boost in confidence she needed. Balling her hands into fists, she turned to the Breakers.

“I know a few days ago we had an issue. Yeah… I was really mad at you guys but I don’t think it was right for me to lash out the way I did either. I thought long and hard these last few days and, well… I’m really sorry for what I said and did to you guys. I’m working on improving myself so I can make a more lasting impact for you guys and hopefully be a bit more…memorable. However..!”

Cuki had a silly grin formed across her face, almost as if she was holding back her laughter.

“You guys weren’t exactly angels either. A slap to the face and bite marks isn’t exactly the best way to comfort someone you know! So, while I forgive you guys, you need to learn a thing or two about earning someone’s trust and the hard work that comes with it! Look, we got off the wrong foot but it shouldn't be something we dwell on forever, right? How else can we grow into better people?” Cuki giggled before showing her true character, the soft and overcaring host she is. She couldn't stay mad at them forever. "With that said, you guys have to make your own dinners and clean after yourselves! I had a feeling some of you guys might have been planning an apology, especially those of us who do not like to lose..." She glanced at Bernkastel for a moment. "Master told me that the best way to apologize to someone is through actions, not words... so I left a bit of a surprise in your rooms."
 
Bernkastel ran her thumb over the bandaid, remaining silent and attentive, though her frown didn't fade despite Cuki's assurances. She scratched at her cheek awkwardly, clearing her throat again as the tip of her tail twitched.

"I'm no mangy cat... but I shouldn't have acted like one either... um..." she looked down at the floor briefly before finding her words again. "You have your reasons to think otherwise, but I did notice you changed... Not because of this Byakko person, but I thought you were so upset about not knowing when Zenta would return that nothing could console you and it affected even the food. I wasn't going to be upset if the person cooking hadn't slept for three days."

Bernkastel's gaze trailed to the floor as her expression became somber, crossing her arms. She could barely help herself with that sort of pain-- other than forcing herself not to think about it.

"Even so, not wanting to be alone again isn't wrong... we only do things the way we know how, but I was too judgemental and riled up to understand it. I like having the 'buddies', so I'll say it. For what I said and did, I'm... s... sorry." The witch straightened herself back up as soon as she uttered it, closing her eyes with a tinge of red on her cheeks.


"T-there. That is all from me. I will accept your terms." 

She stayed in her spot in front of Gogeta, eyeing him over her shoulder looking cautious about what he might do. Rather than using the chance to remove herself to her room, she widened the stance of her legs slightly. Whis had to hold him back physically before but the angel was currently absent, so she figured to remain present in case.
 
Brachi and Bara nodded at this, before Bara went to the room she stayed in with Brachi to see what the surprise was, having become curious. 

"Very well," Brachi said, a smile appearing on the amalgamate's face, "just don't hesitate to ask if you need my help with something, even if you wish to train for all I know."
 
Throughout Cuki and Zenta’s conversation in coaxing the younger Saiyan to apologize, Gogeta stood in his position. The smoldering anger from the last fight had risen up entirely to the same height during the debacle; a strong pressure beginning to mount around the fusion. The man’s deadly and precise one track focus that made him a dangerous warrior in the first place clearly reflected now in his emotions; an unyielding anger beginning to mount simply from hearing Cuki’s voice.

The fiery nature of Gogeta’s ominous demeanor slightly diminished, however, at the apology Cuki began with in addressing the Breakers as a whole. Yet as soon as she began to comment on the wrongs the Breakers enacted during the argument, Gogeta scoffed curtly in unrestrained annoyance. His right eyebrow visibly twitched, along with his muscular arms visibly tensing up.

Gogeta stood in his silent rage shortly after, his arms still crossed in his near hateful scowl turned to the side in his lack of response to any previous prompts regarding him.
 
Lucifer frowned at the conversation. “Is that it? I would expect more than a simple apology. Are you sure this is sufficient enough to quash any adverse feelings after what transparent several days ago?” Nodding his head. “Not saying that any of the choices is wrong. Just strange. Any actual conversation of all problems should be met with some form of conversation, rather than simplifying the matter.” 

The caretaker walked around Cuki as Lucifer observed the young Saiyan’s body language. “Emotions are a complex matter—everyone has different perspective of events, some might go along to avoid inciting more issues, while others might consider such as inflammatory. I do commend some acknowledgement of wrongdoings at some level, though that is still more that needs to be desire. But, if some of you wish to sweep this under the rug rather than dwelling on it and getting to the root of the matter, I won’t object to that choice. The great thing about freedom is that our choices shape future consequences.”

The caretaker stopped, extending her arms carrying Lucifer closer to Cuki and whispered to her ears; inaudible to everyone except for the angel and Cuki herself in a strange, complex language. “Though, you might hide behind that smile of yours, underneath that is a sign of weakness and a lack of an actual will. Let’s see how capable you are now you are no longer hiding behind a deity in future events.” His eyes narrowed but wasn’t in a malicious tone. Instead, it was a tone of curiosity since he hasn’t met Cuki proper since she was Byakko the whole time. This will become a great presentation for the angel, to see an individual’s capabilities.

Not giving Cuki enough time to ushered out a response, the caretaker walked away from the topic. “Well, with that said, the choices you brought forth now is interesting. Let see how long that tactic will hold.” The caretaker pulls out a lollipop candy for Lucifer, taking it with delight.

“What the hell is this foul smell?” Spina’s voice was heard from the outside as soon Lucifer started eating. The old Saiyan walked inside the apartment complex, seeing the others talking with Cuki. “This place is a mess and the door has been ripped off. Did a couple of looters trashed in here too?” Spina’s face was serious and didn’t display much emotion, aside from disgust from the foul smell of the place. He noticed Cuki, but turned his head to the side towards the ground.
 
Cross says to Cuki "you do have a fair point but I think both you and Spina should apologize to each other. I trust the actions will come in the later."

Cross says "I gest most every one has answered the big question of this groups deration."
 
"Aw shucks, don't worry about it, Kettles."

Cuki giggled gingerly at Bernkastel’s apology, knowing it took a lot for the Kitty to get it out of her system, yet, a warm smile formed on her lips, truly grateful for the Witch’s words. Her expression changed when she came to notice Lucifer. Although she has visibly changed and grown from the experience, she still held many feelings about the situation and a little wary about trusting the Breakers again. The cold stare from Gogeta made her fidget somewhat and remember all the things she did to him. As Lucifer spoke to her, he was not entirely wrong about her smile hiding her weakness. The struggle that happened a few days ago still weighed heavily on her shoulders and it was still hard for her to get over what happened. She bit her lip knowing that the others might also be having a similar experience. 

Spina’s voice caught her attention and her smile went flat. She seemed worried about what Spina would think about the event days ago. She decided to leave him alone for the meanwhile but be friendly nonetheless.

“Ah, Mr. Spina, welcome home,” Zenta cheered. “We apologize for the smell, pranksters like to stuff stink bombs in packets. I’m not sure if that is legal…”

Inside the rooms were wrapped boxes, each holding something Cuki thought would be of sentimental value to the others in some way. Brachi would have a box that had dumbbells inside and some candy for Bara. Cross’s box had a few books that were about zombie apocalypses and mysteries. Gogeta’s box had a small black cat plushie that Cuki tried to make look like Bernkastel. The left ear was damaged slightly but Cuki tried to sew it back to normal. Bernkastel’s box was the largest and it contained a large pink bowl with many sweets and red bows. The bowl itself wasn’t originally pink and it was obvious that Cuki painted over it as best she could. It was her attempt to bring a little bit of Lambdadelta back into Bern’s life. Spina’s box was small but inside it was a Chia Pet along with some other gardening tools he would use.

All of the gifts had a small touch of Cuki. Although it was hard to forget what they did to her for three years, she thought it was better to forgive them and try to fix the errors she caused, even if some don’t see it that way. She had to grow and she was willing to make it up to them any way she could.

“Just think of this as forgiveness but I can never shake off what happened. We just have to start brand new, meaning we will see the good, the bad, and the ugly all over again.” Cuki bowed her head to the Breakers. “I will still be wary of you all… but at least the weight has been lifted. Hopefully, my forgiveness will give you all a sense of ease as well because it wasn’t easy… I don’t expect you guys to smother me in love or forgive me. I don’t want it, frankly… I want to give you a reason to trust me again, even if I have to work hard, I don’t care!”

Cuki felt Zenta’s hand on top of her head, rubbing between her ears.

“I am very proud of you, Cuki. Those are strong words, do you think you can uphold them?”

“I’ll give it a shot. It was hard enough to apologize…”
 
Brachi smiled at this.

"Thanks, Cuki, I really appreciate this." She said, while Bara's eyes were shining at seeing the candy, before the Majin moved to Cuki and gave her a hug.

"Thank you so much for the candy!" She said, smiling.
 
Cross says as a Box with high end cooking (knifes, pots, pan and the like) tools appeared next to Cuki "I hope you can accepting this as an apology for my lack of valiance over the three years. This was my best guess on what you may like." Cross dos start reading one the books Cuki gave him.
 
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