"Hm! Maybe over there!" Apollo adjusts his hold of Phantom, holding the guy a bit closer. Phantom could probably tell they're slowing down a bit and going a different direction. 

Apollo asked, "Where do you think we should hide?" He doesn't notice Phantom's eyes are closed. 

Last edited by Echowo (April 7, 2023 12:21:23)

(Lmao RIP Phantom because this next scene is probably going to make him hate Apollo) 

All of the sudden, Phantom was thrown in the air and was free falling for a moment. The moment was terribly too long, despite it's short lasting time. Phantom probably felt his body flip over when Apollo had thrown him, and that he was hurtling in a diagonal direction. The absence of Apollo probably made Phantom feel very cold against the winds, considering Apollo radiates warmth like a human-sized sun. It's probably why Apollo could enjoy flying so high and all the time. There was some cloth in Phantom's hand, a very small piece of Apollo's shirt having ripped off from the force of Apollo's throw and the tightness of Phantom's grip. 

And then Phantom was safe in Apollo's arms again. It would be comforting if what Apollo did wasn't so mean and purposeful. 

Last edited by Echowo (April 7, 2023 16:39:03)

Apollo's laughter is sweet and carefree. He doesn't seem to know what's wrong, or maybe he doesn't register Phantom's reaction as bad. It's hard to tell. 

"Aww. You're so cute!" He then reassured, "We're close to the ground, so don't worry! Just enjoy the ride." 

"...Oh! Why didn't you say so sooner? I would have totally found another way to find a hiding spot!" 

The wind slows down a little as Apollo gently drifts them both to the ground. 

"Plus, if you don't want to look at the ground, you could have just gazed upon my beautiful face! I wouldn't mind, my face is even more beautiful than the landscape!" 

He never misses a chance to boast, huh. 

Apollo immediately made an ":0" type face and got closer to Phantom's face, inspecting his eye and scar. He doesn't seem to know what personal space is as he gently tilts Phantom's face up and over, leaning Phantom's face in an angle that allowed Apollo to get a better view of the scarring. 

"My my! That's so cool! How'd you go and get such a thing?" 

It's impossible to tell if Apollo is doing all of this out of pure curiosity and amazement or if he's teasing just to see how flustered Phantom can get. 

Apollo is a little too complicated for anyone's tastes. 
 

(XD Apollo out here trying to rizz up Phantom)

"Hm. Interesting!" 

Apollo finally backed away, looking around. They're surrounded by trees. The grass is patchy with mud, mud puddles, and large rocks. 

"Welp! Better get to hiding!" Apollo smiled. 

He suddenly disappeared. 

(XD) 

Maybe it's cheating, but to be fair, no one explained the rules to Phantom, especially considering it's a bit of different rules due to Ruin's blindness. 

Apollo was hiding within the shadows, moving through them and reappearing into a tree high above. He sat on a branch, swishing his legs. 

It only takes Ruin about five minutes to run into the area where Apollo was (and where Phantom used to be). Ruin's movements seem inhumanly fast, which makes sense considering he's half demon. He stands still, listening for Apollo. Apollo had fizzled out his own presence to make it harder for Ruin to find him, and Ruin knew this. 

Ruin also keeps trying to sense Phantom, however Phantom's lack of existence on the current plane only leads Ruin to where Phantom was originally standing, and no where else, which is extremely frustrating to Ruin. 

Ruin moves closer to Apollo's location, yet he doesn't seem to be sure where Apollo is at. Maybe this gives Phantom a chance to mess with Ruin or something. 

 

Ruin jumped and screeched, followed by a short burst of cursing and waving his arms around, trying to see if he can touch Phantom. Phantom's aura had been present only for a moment, which only confused Ruin more. Adding on, being poked definitely spooked Ruin and made Ruin's teenage competitiveness spike up.

"I'll catch you!" Ruin yelled, sounding much more like a little kid. "Just wait and see!"

Now it's good to note, Ruin is holding a pack of sticky notes. Phantom better watch out and not get one stuck on him.


From his hiding spot, Apollo is covering his mouth, almost falling out of the tree from being doubled over from laughter. He is fighting for his life to stay quiet.

Ruin doesn't hear him... yet...

Ruin was walking carefully, peeling a sticky note from the stack and walking slowly. He's getting closer to Apollo's location, however he seems much more cautious of the world around him.

Another screech, but Ruin is having fun. It's apparent by how his lips just slightly curve up, and there is a slight, happier change to his screaming. He doesn't laugh, it's hard to tell if he remembers how to, but his screaming seems to be a close equivalent. Ruin tore the sticky note off of his forehead and crumpled it into his pocket. 

"Gah! You're like a ghost!" 

Apollo fell out of the tree from laughing, being sucked back into the shadows and reappearing further away from Ruin. 

Ruin paused and reassessed where Apollo was, the shifting into the shadows causing Apollo to give off a short amount of presence for Ruin to follow. Once again he's peeling a sticky note and walking towards Apollo, but now he's slightly swinging his hand around to try to catch Phantom too. However, Ruin isn't sure how Phantom is suddenly able to move around and hide his presence so quickly and well. 

Ruin thinks Phantom is just REALLY good at concealment magic. 

 

(X3) 

Ruin stands at the base of the tree where Apollo sits, still waving his hand around. 

"Lord Apollo, I will give you a head start on running," Ruin stated, preparing to jump. 

"Ha! Ha! As if I need a head start!" Apollo laughed, very bold. His aura is strong, meaning Apollo wasn't going to try hiding anymore. "Catch me if you can, Ruin! But I doubt- GAH!" 

Ruin almost had him, on the ground one moment and scaling up very high in the tree the next. Apollo had to jump, Ruin's sticky note slapping against the tree where Apollo's arm would have been.

Apollo rolled on the ground, jumping up and jogging away, Ruin right behind him like Apollo's own shadow. He's still swinging one of his arms around, ready to sticky-note Phantom if he can. Swinging his arm around, however, is somewhat slowing Ruin down. 

Ruin just can't reach Apollo yet, it seems. 
 

"Hey!" Ruin yelled out, feeling the lack of sticky note in his hand. 

The note hit the side of his head, catching Apollo's attention. 

"Huh? Ruin, how'd you do that?" Apollo said, stopping. He thought he was caught. Ruin ran right into him, unable to stop in time. Apollo didn't seem fazed, unmoving as Ruin stumbled back. 

Ruin didn't lose balance, and confusedly asked, "Do what?" 

"Get the sticky note in my hair like that!" 

"I haven't even touched you?" 

"Huh???" 

bop

Phantom grinned. "If I reveal the trick it won't be magic anymore," he chided.

Phantom shifted into a ghost immediately with barely a thought, Ruin falling directly through him to the ground.