Sakura:
The snake’s mouth opens, and you’re bathed in a beam of light. You can feel your powers restored as the tail end of the snake unravels a few inches.
Flipping through to the front of the book you find, in a familiar perfect script, the words: Property of Deft Annalist Tiresias, AKA Fatima El-Amin circa 1930.
“Moon Prison Activation!” You look up to find Kaguya brandishing her wand, and a beam of moonlight around a wild-eyed former knight. 「We are most assuredly not sitting down to evening tea. She’s unstable, and she’s killed someone, as she herself admits. She needs to be put down before she becomes a star child.」
The former knight, Kazue, wails and thrashes against the edge of the beam of moonlight. A glint of light announces the katana being drawn from her blade set, but there is only an inch of blade. Nevertheless, she beats it against the invisible wall of light.
Paresh, who is your student, and you should feel really good about remembering that, takes a step back from the display. 「Aratani, you idiot! We had a chance to understand her, to understand what happened last night.」
Kaguya tosses her hair with her wand hand.「It’s simple, she made three more pacts as a power move and killed Perdita so Wei and Kyou went into hiding. -or were you not listening?」 The little girl saunters forward in the direction of the broom.
Kaguya lunges forward, wand tracing pink ribbons in the air. Ayatori has to flail about to keep balance on her shoulder. “Moon Prison Activation!” Of course she names her spells in English. A beam of moonlight traps the poser, and you feel an odd twist in your stomach. 「We are most assuredly not sitting down to evening tea. She’s unstable, and she’s killed someone, as she herself admits. She needs to be put down before she becomes a star child.」
The former knight called Kazue explodes in a flurry of limbs and hair, beating against the edge of the beam of moonlight. Suddenly, she has the hilt of a katana in hand, but it’s broken off near the hand guard. The hunger ebbs from your stomach. Something strange is happening.
The young man with the crutch moves away from the beam. 「Aratani, you idiot! We had a chance to understand her, to understand what happened last night.」
Your mother begins to approach the broom trinket.「It’s simple, she made three more pacts as a power move, killed Perdita, so Wei and Kyou went into hiding. -or were you not listening?」 Something is wrong. Your... affliction is not acting the way it usually does. But why?
Prissy-moon lunges forward, the raven on her shoulder flapping to keep balance. She traces complex rune in the air with her wand and shouts. “Moon Prison Activation!” The spell creates a beam of moonlight around Kazue. 「We are most assuredly not sitting down to evening tea. She’s unstable, and she’s killed someone, as she herself admits. She needs to be put down before she becomes a star child.」
Kazue screams and draws her katana to strike at the edge of the beam of moonlight. It looks like she went for the blade by instinct, because she doesn’t expect it to end an inch beyond the guard.
The former racoon backs away from the light. 「Aratani, you idiot! We had a chance to understand her, to understand what happened last night.」That name... What was that vision you saw in the clutches of the fear magic? Why would that name have come up in your vision, then a girl with that name show up?
「It’s simple,」 Prissy-moon explains as she picks her way toward the broom, 「she made three more pacts as a power move, killed Perdita, so Wei and Kyou went into hiding. -or were you not listening?」
The girl in pink brandishes her wand, the phantoms goading her to action. The raven on her shoulder spreads his wings like an omen. “Moon Prison Activation!” A beam of moonlight rises up around the punk rock girl. 「We are most assuredly not sitting down to evening tea. She’s unstable, and she’s killed someone, as she herself admits. She needs to be put down before she becomes a star child.」
The girl Junpei called Kazue screams and thrashes against the wall of moonlight. It doesn’t seem to be rage or fear, but simple animal instinct. With a flash, the katana from her blade set is out of its sheath, but there is only an inch of blade, something the punk rocker doesn’t seem to expect.
Paresh tuggs the back of your hoodie as he takes a step away from the light. 「Aratani, you idiot! We had a chance to understand her, to understand what happened last night.」 You’re not so sure. It seems like it would have taken something more than tea to draw any coherent information from her. Any emotion she displays is hollow and fleeting, like an echo or projection from those present, and without a mental state to guide her intent, she just cannot maintain a train of thought.
The princess scoffs haughtily.「It’s simple, she made three more pacts as a power move, killed Perdita, so Wei and Kyou went into hiding. -or were you not listening?」 Confident in her magic, she strides over toward the broom.
You feel a nip at your heel, and find Zeek looking up at you with an expression of disapproval. Disapproval of what, you can’t be sure. He kept quiet, though, and below the notice of the ladies present.
「Alice, of course...」 Miss Sauta accepts the name with a knowing smile. 「Luckily you’re not here on hookah day. Let’s get you seated at the front of house.」 She turns to Emi without breaking eye contact with you. 「Split the hatter’s tables with the hare while he’s out, I’ll serve Miss Lewis.」
You’re lead out into the front of the cafe with Zeek at your heels, and set at a small table near the front door. The front windows are painted to look like stained glass, and fill the room with multicolored light. The tables themselves are well lit by stocky mushroom lamps that seem to also serve as biscotti baskets. Business is winding down. There are only a few other tables and booths that are occupied. Emi and whoever is playing the march hare should be more than enough to cover.
Miss Sauta hands you a menu, bound like a storybook. 「You look like the adventurous type. I’d recommend the Duchess’ Brew, it’s a spicy bubble tea. Of course, if you’re just here on business, our Sencha does the job.」 She eases herself into the chair opposite you, peeking over her shoulder at her coworkers. 「Are you from another region? I noticed you’ve got your own pet. I guess you folks have to call in to work sometimes too. You covering for Wei in Obusa?」
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Aratani, huh? With all the crazy magic stuff going on, he has to wonder - is this the girl condemned to daycare? Did he actually do that? If that was the case, he felt bad. She would have had a terrible childhood, and it would be his fault.
Didn't change the fact he was absolutely pissed off by what was happening. Whatever Khutulun did, it didn't change the fact that this b$%!@ seems to think she's above reproach. He didn't care what he'd caused. He didn't care that, from the way she sounded, she was a control freak afraid that someone else would leave her in some state she never wanted to be in, possibly from his own actions.
From the sounds of it, she intended to kill her. In her words, Khutulun would be "put down." Like an animal. He understood, he really did. He knew the prices attached to those trinkets. But this went against every fibre of his being. Playing it off like a nervous tic, he bit into his thumb. Almost hard enough to draw blood. He closed up his posture to match the expression, hugging himself one armed, hand over the pocket with his iPod, and gave everyone a look that said "Are you really going to let her do this?"
One chance. Just one chance. One reason not to start a fight. No more acts. 「So. Moon girl. You going to kill her? Nothing else you can do? No explanation or alternate measure? I want a straight answer. Because you seemed determined to play it off. To make a villain of her. To say whatever you have to so that nobody acts against you, or questions it, let alone yourself. She's still human, despite the accusations. Hope some bad experience as a kid isn't making you act stupid.」 His voice is void of its ever-present warmth.
He was glad he didn't need the poem. "I consent" was going to be a lot faster if he needed it.
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Juno's heart skips a beat at the boy's brazen remarks towards her mother. How could anyone possibly be that stupid? Kaguya's presence is not at all diminished in this form, he has to realize that this is not a woman he should be making smart remarks to.
Juno understands the desire to save Kazue, of course, but that is certainly not going to help matters. Bereft of options Juno is reduced to making frantic "cut it out" movements with her hand over her throat, hoping the stupid boy realizes what he's done before he does more.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Miyako stumbles a few steps as Paresh yanks her back, eyes darting from the frenzied woman in the magic cage and the young girl plagued by fears of loss. Kazue needed to be contained, she was not only volatile but devoid of any real genuine emotions, an empty shell as she'd deduced earlier, one step away from the monster they'd fought the night before. Yet seeing the rather outwardly composed princess giving into the horde of spectres looming over her gave the polyphobe a sobering flash of empathy.
She gripped her can of mace tight and ran over to the Moon Girl, brandishing her own trinket and spraying it at the dark figures only she could see, shouting, 「L-Leave her alone! L-Let her think!」
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
「You weren’t there.」
Tiresias glares at Junpei as she punctuates every single word with a heavy footstep towards him.
「The Star Child we fought. She was incredibly powerful, ruthless and insane. She attacked defenceless humans, children even, and she would have killed us all given the chance. We… almost lost Alex that night.」
She turns towards Aratani and sighs. She tries to show how tired she is to her and her steps are now lighter and softer as she slowly approaches the prison.
「She is unstable and unreliable. She murdered someone that, I guess, she cared about before making her trinkets. Although she is still technically human, she is mostly shattered, and yes I agree that this is a golden opportunity to learn more about the hair thin edge between us and the abyss. Not here, not now. If she were to turn into a Star Child she could wipe out this entire block exceedingly easy. Dozens would die on this first impact, and how many more afterwards? Could you honestly sleep with all their blood on your hands?」
She shot the questions towards Junpei only slightly turning her head to see him. Then she spoke again this time her voice was dripping with poison and contempt.
「Don’t talk of what you don’t understand.」
Again she focused her attention on Aratani.
「I trust your judgement. You must know more about this situation than any of us, but is there no othe-」
Then Miyako stood up brandishing her trinket spraying magic everywhere towards Aratani. Leave her alone? What is that supposed to mean? Is she trying to release Kasue? Is that who "her" is referring to?
「What are you doing?」
Tiresias shouts this in panic as she reflexively grabs her book and cycles her magic through it to protect Aratani of whatever the Dread Witch was trying to accomplish.
Damn that girl. She was just as bad.
「Sure, I wasn't there. I have no idea what kind of ruthless monster you're on about, that you're so afraid of. So I don't see the crazy monster you're layering over her. I see a girl. Broken, damaged, unstable, whatever you like - but a girl. One who's just about to be murdered without a second thought. Tell me what you like of the consequences. I know they're terrible. I wouldn't want it to happen either. It's one thing having to rest with the knowing the aftermath of a monster you created. Frankly, I may have already made one.」 There's a harsh glare at Aratani with this.
「But I wouldn't be able to sleep if I didn't try to save her either. Something needs to be done. But not. This.」 It's at this point he notices what the lady in the back is doing. She seems concerned. 「Sorry lady. I know this is possibly the worst thing I can do, but it's probably the only thing as well. If you know her, you should be aware she's the sort of type that will almost never listen to anyone once they've decided on something. They don't take perceived challenges to their authority well. Makes them do crazy things. May even kill me for this, depending on how far in she's gone.」 He gives a quick apologetic gesture, to say "Sorry, but I have to." 「When you're done cowering from her, help me out. I'm not going to release Khutulun with what I've heard, but that doesn't mean I won't stop this mess.」
The magic's started flying. He trusted Miyako was trying to clear Aratani's head. "Let her think" were not the words of someone trying to complicate things. White-hair didn't see that. Seems now's the time. He draws blood. The iPod comes out, and is smeared with it all across the back. And a massive grin forms on Junpei's face.
「Hey, white-hair! The words you've been waiting for! Consent's the most important thing, right? Well guess what!」 He gives a big, mad laugh. 「I. Consent. Start my watch.」
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
|
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Juno slaps her face to her palm and mumbles, "God men are so stupid." She feels privately thankful that she never bothered changing out of her magical form, since she's apparently going to have to fight this white-knighting ingrate assuming her mother does not splat him immediately.
The only question is: to subdue or to kill? Juno is too tired of Junpei at this point to really care if he dies all that much, his insufferable cocktail of ignorance and arrogance chipping away at her last nerve. Of course, it would be disastrous if mother wanted to capture Junpei for some reason and Juno left him bleeding on the floor; the young lady sighs, waiting once again for her mother's actions. If she fights to kill it'll be obvious, at least, given her preference for flash and flair.
'Well read? They have a manual?'
"Worth a shot I guess as long as I don't teleport half myself or something, what fiction would tell me more about all this." She said leaving 'this' vague.
Now with the snake and her doll uner her control Sakura begins heading in the direction of the leash that was previously tethered to it.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
「Thank you, miss. I do so appreciate the 'personal touch' when it comes to such matters.」
'Alice' gives Zeek a gentle pet on the head, an acknoweldgement of the poor puppy's concern without tipping the hand as to how deep they may be getting in all of this.
「I'll go with the mountain chai, with a slight bit of cream, thank you. It's very soothing on the nerves with a hint of the sweetness of beverages where I am from, which as you noted, is another region. My personal details aren't important, what is important is getting a better 'feel' for the situation -- getting ambushed in an alley isn't quite what I had anticipated when I took this job.」
Holy crap, what the hell are you saying, seriously, this is like, bull. Stop. Just stop, okay? This can't end well at all. She KNOWS!
Relax. We've got this covered. It's just some hard talking work. Smarter not harder and all that, right?
There’s a cascade of magic throughout the alley as tensions run high. You duck past the beam of solid light and casts cloying purple smoke from the mace bottle in your hand. Tiresias grips his book, and there’s a wave of teal that cuts through the fog. Then, Junpei is driven to the floor, skin peeling off in ribbons of pink. His mouth is open in a scream, but sound is muted completely in the alley. The air grows thick with power.
The princess stumbles to a halt, looking down as though she’s suddenly aware of the misshapen goblins around her. The goblins themselves, teal outlines in the lavender haze, back away, shrinking and dying as you watch. Loss, abandonment, failure, and other caricatures of deep-seated fears fall to the floor around the girl.
Just when things are looking good, spots of teal embers grow on the petite form of Kaguya, eating away a glamour. A new and singular fear, similar to Paresh’s shroud of shame, comes to the fore, and Kaguya staggers back, hiding her face in her hands as a pair of plush pink ears pop up around her crown. Her skin takes on the color and consistency of bubblegum, and eyes of two colors peek out from between her clawed fingers. Her wand and mirror clatter to the floor.
Junpei’s skin, torn into yards of thin ribbon, rises up around the figure left behind. Then, the light in the alley shifts as a blossom of red, like blood over a spotlight, overtakes the moonbeam, and Kaguya also falls to her knees. Sound returns to the alley in the dead of twilight, but it’s Kazue who is howling. Suspended in the blood-red moonbeam, she howls like death itself, limbs pulled back, contorting her spine.
There’s a cascade of magic throughout the alley as tensions run high. You catch the girl ducking past the beam of solid light as she casts cloying purple smoke from the mace bottle in her hand. You grip your book, and there’s a wave of teal that cuts through the fog. Then, Junpei is driven to the floor, skin peeling off in ribbons of pink. His mouth is open in a scream, but sound is muted completely in the alley. The air grows thick with power.
Then you see what the girl was spraying. Everyone does. Kaguya stumbles to a halt as she’s suddenly aware of the misshapen goblins around her, teal outlines in the lavender haze. The goblins themselves back away, shrinking in stature as well as stance. Loss, abandonment, failure, and a myriad of other caricatures of deep-seated fears come to life only to fall to the floor around the girl. Spots of teal embers grow on the petite form of Kaguya as you also dispel a glamour she has been holding. The girl staggers back, hiding her face in her hands as a pair of plush pink ears pop up around her crown. Her skin takes on the color and consistency of bubblegum, and eyes of two colors peek out from between her clawed fingers. Her wand and mirror clatter to the floor.
Junpei’s skin, torn in yards of thin ribbon, rises up around the figure left behind. Then, the light in the alley shifts as a blossom of red, like blood over a spotlight, overtakes the moonbeam, and Kaguya also falls to her knees. Sound returns to the alley in the placid hours of September twilight, but it’s Kazue who is howling. Suspended in the blood-red moonbeam, she howls like death itself, limbs pulled back, contorting her spine.
There’s a cascade of magic throughout the alley as tensions run high. The girl formerly dressed in doom and gloom ducks past the beam of solid light and casts cloying purple smoke from the mace bottle in her hand. The silver-haired sylvan casts her hand out and there’s a wave of teal that cuts through the fog. That’s the last thing you see before you are driven to the floor by a blinding pain. Your body is one fire. You can feel the esoteric static your body is pushing through to complete your transformation, like a curtain of glass and needles.
When your vision finally clears, you’re surrounded by yards of thin pink ribbon, rising up around you. The world is slightly larger, like you’re a kid again. Just as you feel the rush of relief and excitement, as well as the surge of power, like a reservoir of cool clean water just within reach, the light in the alley takes on a ruby cast. The moonbeam holding Kazue has turned blood-red. Sound returns to the alley like a long-lost lover in the wan hours of twilight, but it’s Kazue’s sweet voice howling in pain. Suspended in the blood-red moonbeam, she releases a swelling deathrattle, limbs pulled back, contorting her spine.
There’s a cascade of magic throughout the alley as everyone insists on saving every other person from everyone else. The girl from the back of the alley ducks past your mother’s beam of solid light and sprays purple smoke from the mace bottle in her hand. The girl with the book casts a wave of teal that cuts through the fog. Then, the new guy is driven to the floor, skin peeling off in ribbons of pink. His mouth is open in a scream, but sound is muted completely in the alley. It’s a complete mess. Certifiable, every one of them.
Your mother stumbles to a halt as misshapen goblins sprout up around her, teal outlines in the lavender haze. The goblins themselves back away, dying out like discovered assassins. Loss, abandonment, failure, among other caricatures of deep-seated fears come to life and fall to the floor around your mother. On a certain level you knew they were there, like a mantle of responsibility, but you never would have thought they were so personal. Then, spots of teal embers grow on your mother’s petite form, eating away a facade that had been there all along. She staggers back, hiding her face in her hands as a pair of plush pink ears pop up around her crown. Her skin takes on the color and consistency of bubblegum, and eyes of two colors peek out from between her clawed fingers. In the over-use of her magic, she’s suffered not one disfigurement, but several. Her wand and mirror clatter to the floor, but you don’t feel anything from your own affliction.
The up-start’s skin, torn in yards of thin ribbon, rises up around the figure left behind. Then the moonbeam is overtaken by a blood-red color, like a drop of ink blooming in clear water, and your mother also falls to her knees. Sound returns to the alley in the dead of twilight, but it’s Kazue who is howling. Suspended in the blood-red moonbeam, she howls like death itself, limbs pulled back, contorting her spine. Oddly, you feel strength flow into your limbs. A dizziness you hadn’t noticed is dispelled, and you feel satiated. As you watch the poseur struggle in your mother’s net, you feel something hollow inside you fill with a dangerous warmth.
Ms. Sauta tries not to look like she’s glancing at the back room reflexively. 「Oh I had a feeling it was going to be something bad, what with Wei dropping off the grid. He told us there was someone coming in from out west, I just hadn’t any idea how far he meant. Is it to do with the convention thing at the mall tonight? You stakin’ that out? I knew gettin’ that many kids together in a building with that much water damage would be no good news. I heard the whole thing was built on top of a weapon stockpile.」 She says all of this in a hyperbolic tone of seriousness, like she’s waited her whole life to be part of something “going down” but she’s been watching too many action flicks. You knew a guy like that in bootcamp. You don’t remember seeing him again after the first three days.
The march hare stops by and asks Ms. Sauta what to do about a noise complaint outside the building. He seems to think she should call the police. Ms. Sauta looks nervously to you.
You stand in the backyard of your neighbor’s house with your loyal belt snake and your animated doll, Tomoyo, looking out into the maze of fence posts and bushes to the north-east. There’s also a boy you control laying in the front yard sleeping. Sleeping may not be the right word. Being weird is what he’s doing. At first he was sleeping really deep like your mother does when she’s at the hospital, and now he’s also pretending to sleep, which is even weirder.
You’ve gotten around by bus routes before, but never tried to follow a straight line on foot. It’s getting late too. All the sunset is gone and now it’s just blue and the stars are coming out. Looking around the yard you do see a big kid bike with a delivery wagon propped up against your neighbor’s house.
It looks like you’re going to miss bedtime again. You should probably have to brush your teeth twice tomorrow. That’s the kind of thing other kids at school complain about. You don’t know why their parents make them do stuff like that, it just sounds like a punishment. You could probably skip dinner, you were going to anyway. That’s another thing parents do to kids who don’t go to bed on time.
In-line with everything else about her, Aratani’s library is an impressive display of extravagances. Filling all three floors of the building, and normally lit by a domed skylight, the walls of the room are filled with books. One section is devoted to an old microfiche archive. A few of the larger tomes from the collection are set out on lecterns, including what appears to be a leather-bound notebook with scraps, photos, and rubbings laminated to the pages and wreathed in annotations. One wall on the second floor is made up of a series of shelves with turn cranks, compressing aisles upon aisles of books into a single wall marked with a plaque that reads Confirmed Histories. Another shelf near the entrance is marked as Recent Acquisitions; to be Filed. 「Oh, it’s in here somewhere...」
In the center of the room, as promised, is a model of Obusa City with a number of ambitious additions. Namely, the college campus is built out over the site of the old mall. Suzu approaches the model and eyes the miniature mansion like a pool shark. 「The young one should be around here.」 She indicates a cluster of houses near the north-west edge of town. 「I don’t know how much help you’d be. The danger has passed.」
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Last Scene (In relation to HP and other things):
"Cloud Watcher? Moon Warden?" she asks, allowing the conversation in regards to Harry Potter drop, for now, "And what's this about 'cantrip'?" she asks, shaking her head. "Moon Warden Chell is May's thing. Do you have any idea what mine is? And what do you mean by 'interacts with'?"
* * *
"The Mall is filled with... bad things. Or at least was. If she's going to expand the campus over the area the mall is... there's a lot of other cleanup that likely needs to be done in that area." she says, chewing her lower lip, and staying slightly off-topic. "I don't feel like it's likely to be fixed just from removing one super-ghost's fetters. How do you know she's safe again?"
Sakura picks up the belt and wraps it around her waist before picking up Tomoyo and walking forward still nervous, but her curiosity winning out.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Alice places their hand on Chou's.
「Relax. This place is safe for now. The wards are strong and the situation isolated and secure. As far as a 'convention', this would be the first I've heard about it directly, Wei was a bit... guarded in the correspondence I recieved. And yes, it would appear that 'staking that out' would be on the agenda this evening, once we've finished with our nice relaxed chat and we have refocused ourselves on what is important, right? And mistakes may have been made, which will leave us to clean them up. The weapon stockpile situation is part of the investigation, to be sure.」
Stop the BS, seriously, she's going to figure out that something's up and freak out any second now, just GET OUT OF HERE!
Serene like a still pond, my young student. We're almost done here, and we'll get that chai we've been dying for. You've had chai before, right? Oh, no? You'll be in for a treat, then!
「For the moment, let the antics outside slide. After all, we should let noisy neighbors sort themselves out, right?」
Alice puts forth a knowing smile as she waits for her tea, full of confidence.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Time to...what? AAAGH! God...damn...this...HURTS!
For a moment, time stands still. All he knows is a terrible, terrible pain. Junpei doesn't even feel it has he drops to the floor, writhing in agony, his screams unheard.
And when it finally stops, time moves once more. Behind the ribbons of skin, picking herself up, is a girl with flowing mint green hair that reaches a bit beyond the bottom of her dress. The dress itself is formed of a layer in merlot over one in cream, frilled with a cream bow about the neck, only stopping at a pair of purple boots reaching halfway to the knee. A pink ribbon is tied around her head, forming a huge bow on one side like the one at her throat. Her face is rather innocent, and her ears strangely pointed, a pair of large cyan pearl drop earrings hanging from them.
She is grinning like an idiot, and she feels fabulous. Even as the sky shifts colour, the screaming starts, and her face turns serious, it's hard not to tell she's feeling good. A look at her left wrist shows a band around it, and with a flick of the wrist, a holographic disk with several symbol covered buttons and a display appears atop the band. From there, a flat blade running along her arm with several slots materialises. Two compartments form on the disk, one above the wrist that is filled by a deck of cards, another where the blade meets the disk that seems to feed into it.
At a rapid pace, she begins to draw from and return cards to the disk, using the buttons to switch between several decks, slotting in certain cards atop the blade in various states of face up, down, forward and sideways, and others into the blade itself. With a few cards left in hand, a button is pressed on the disk and the holographic device pulses with energy, causing each slotted card to glow as the device fully activates.
The specific configuration used was intended to convert Kazue's screams of pain - a terrible waste of a voice, considering the individual in question - into a magic suppressing melody, that would stifle any active magical effects like the moonbeam or whatever was harming her, or transformative ones like...whatever the process was that turned magical girls into these "Star Children". Not that he understood what happened there, but he hoped it would work.
A sweet, melodic voice comes from the girl. 「If this works, please, don't go for the magic, just grab Khutulun while she's off guard and get her trinkets away. There's a limo right there to hold and drive off with them. If there wasn't a range on these, I doubt you would carry them around so much.」 She herself starts to barrel towards the net while Khutulun is still inactive.
Sakura:
You carve a path through the back yards of your neighbors in the direction you saw the leash coming from. You really couldn't say what's in that direction.
There are a few fences, mostly made from old stones, but for the first leg of the search, they're all barriers you've gotten past before. There's a stretch of wild growth you have to cross with a low brook where water runs off when it rains too much. You remember one spring catching tadpoles in the water. Now the air is full of little frog noises. The two of you are trampling the tall grass, leaving a pretty obvious trail.
You're at the top of a muddy bluff over the brook, looking down at the rocks in the muddy banks. There's a low path through the reeds that will get you down, but you've got to be careful to keep track of your direction. You could jump down, but you might scrape yourself on the rocks. Further along the brook, there's a large pipe that crosses over. What do you do?
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
As the various spectres and goblins retreat and fade away, Miyako can't help but give a tiny, somewhat surprised smile. It worked. The smile quickly fades as the same teal embers burning away the horde of fears spread over the tiny frame of the magical girl she was trying to help. She wasn't sure at first if it was her fault, but a quick glance to Tiresias assuaged that fear slightly, she wasn't the only person calling on magic, and turning people into... cats? Wasn't her presumed specialty.
She quickly moves to cover her ears as two agonizing screams fill the air, glancing in horror at the flaying form of Junpei as his first transformation takes a terribly painful turn. She's too glad to look away towards Kazue writhing in the moonbeam prison, as much as that was a disturbing sight as well.
As the transformation ended, she glanced back at the long, green haired woman that had taken Junpei's place and was that a duel disk? She watched in confusion as the new woman shuffled and drew and played from her deck.
|
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
The things happening to Junpei and Kazue barely even register with Juno; she is wholly fixated on the horrifying, hideous visage her mother has been reduced to. Too much magic had caused this, but the error was surely not Kaguya's; the goblins, aspects of fear, had driven mother to this fate, and the one who's powers are based in fear is... Miyako.
"You... you did this." Juno clenches her fists and grits her teeth, all of her rage directed at the Dread Witch. Tears of hatred welling up in her eyes, she summons chains to bind the traitorous girl. Killing intent is plainly visible on her face.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Tiresias' arm went limp next to her as her magic surged forwards towards the smoke of the Dread Witch. Casting spells was getting harder and harder and this last one took too much effort from her that she just shot it out completely uncontrolled. Breathing heavily for a few moments she stopped as the alley was plunged in silence, not a normal silence like the calm before the storm, it was a thick oppressive silence that engulfed and devoured sound.
Looking around the alley she could see Junpei in his transformation sequence surrounded by ribbons of his own skin screaming a silent scream. She winced for a second at his pain but at the same time felt relieved. Now he wasn’t a victim anymore and he wouldn’t be collateral in whatever happened there, now he was in charge of his own fate, not her.
Again she turned her attention to Kaguya and she saw them, the goblins surrounding Kaguya became visible and fell to the ground.
Teal outlines? That’s my magic, right? Are those what Chrysanth was casting magic at? Oh dear… I can’t believe I thought.
Then teal flames sprouted on Kaguya herself and Tiresias panicked. If teal outlines in the creatures were her doing then the flames were as well, and they were harming Kaguya. Were they turning her into something else?
[i]That’s impossible, my magic doesn’t work that way. I tried changing my clothes before and barely managed to prevent them from catching fire. So what was happening? If Chrysanth was targeting those goblins with her magic then she could see them and my magic simply revealed them to the world. Revealing, uncovering the truth. That sounds more like my magic at work, but that would mean Kaguya was actually that thing? That’s impossible. Could the powers to expose the truth also hide it and obscure it in illusions?[/b]
She dove next to Kaguya and kneeled there. She didn’t really know what to do but something needed to be done, Kaguya did not look happy or even stable at all and then the horrible screaming started, the prison somehow changed which meant Kaguya changed.
「Kaguya, are you okay? Are you hurt? Listen to me.」
Tiresias looked around searching for support but only found Junpei, now a green haired girl, casting magic. She soke and all Tiresias heard was that she wanted to release Kuthulun. Fine, let her have her. The consequences are on her head.
「Kaguya, we have to get you out of here. Come on. We can always find Kuthulun again later.」
Tiresias pointed to her book discreetly and nodded towards the limo. The most important thing right now was figuring out how to help Kaguya. Wherever Kuthulun went, she couldn’t hide from them.
Miyako turns to face Juno as she hears the girl snap at her. She's not able to do much more than yelp as the girl's golden chains capture her, struggling against the magically conjured binds uselessly. In a panic, she quickly shouts her transformation phrase, "D-Dread Witch Chrysanth!" And takes her alter ego once again, in a cloud of ominous darkness. As it dissipates, the spiders tasked with weaving the intricate black lace of her dress remain, seemingly gnawing at the restraints defiantly.
She tries to angle her can of mace towards Juno, releasing another gout of fear warping smoke towards the elegantly clothed magical girl. Quickly analyzing the demons plaguing her assailant, Chrysanth murmurs a single haunting sentence, 「Sh-She would never love a m-murderer...」 and lets her magic do the rest to instill and perverse Juno's CRIPPLING DOUBT.
The magic in the alley begins to warp the fabric of reality. Time slips forward and back like the bands of color in a grease slick. A dark and ominous fog rolls in, shrouding you all from the street. Kaguya rolls forward into Tiresias’ arms, reaching up to pull the long rabbit’s ears down over her face.
Kazue’s wails take on a processed quality, becoming melodic and oversampled. Cracks begin to form along the moonbeam as Airi’s magic begins to take effect.
Then, a hole, ringed in golden light, but containing a void opens below Miyako. The chains that shoot out and anchor into the walls appear to be made from diamond and each link bears barbs and serrated blades.
Time pauses for a moment as the moonbeam shatters. Tiresias is running from the carnage, Kaguya in her arms. Airi is revealing a facedown amplifier, absorbed in her own elegant weaves. Ayatori has taken flight to avoid the chains. Kazue is collapsing to the floor. Miyako, calls to her magical girl and takes aim, but before she can fire, she finds herself on the pavement two feet from the Sovereign’s portal. Paresh Dhital, broom in hand, hovers over the abyss, chains twisting to close in around him. Chrysanth looks down to find the elbow crutch in her other hand.
Paresh doesn’t have a chance to scream out. The chains twist and tighten, and come away dripping with blood. Paresh falls to the floor in chunks, his insides spilling on the pavement. His eyes are hollow and frozen in a shocked expression. Golden fire begins to spread from the broken pieces of broom and a spot on Dhital’s chest, consuming everything. In seconds there is nothing but ash.
Juno is hit in the side of the chest by an arc of swirling purple plasma. Chrysanth has both trinkets in hand, mace and white cane, and despite their respective sizes, she seems to tower over Juno.
Staggering to her feet, Kazue takes a few shaky steps back. Her eyes are a steely blue, and uncharacteristically alert. With a kick she takes off into the air and is gone.
Branches of stray plasma crack and dance around Juno as she’s driven to the ground. It’s hard to see what her spell might be doing.
Ms. Sauta is nodding along like it all makes sense. 「Yes, very good. Serves them right.」 She’s still nodding until she nodices the menu folded on the table and remembers you’ve ordered a drink. She looks around again, this time even less discretely, but her coworkers are busy. 「Let me just get that tea for you.」Collecting the menu, she toddles off to the serving counter.
Under the table, Zeek whines. He’s watching the back door and shifting back and forth on his paws. Justice, he says, Cruel.
As she’s throwing open the library’s doors she shrugs. 「It’s not something I know, but I’m sure you could find her name in the library. The titles and the names don’t always show up together. The name will pass from one girl to the next, but the titles will be different. The titles effect what a magi can do without trying to bend magic. The Mistress calls this sort of trick a cantrip because it’s not a risk. She can peer through mirrors, as you saw. Her domain is the moon and anti-magic.」
Suzu nods, looking down at the model as Sora continues. 「It was the same with the old movie theater. Now that’s Shirakawa tower. These three points are the intersections of ley lines, and power flows there like water down a hill. With the tower and the chateau, the shadow has no place to go but the mall, at least in this territo- ... ry.」 Suzu turns north again and bites her lip. 「Justice is cruel...」
Shaking her head, she turns back to the model of Obuza. To Sora’s last question she holds out her hands, gesturing to the library.「I do more than dust these books.」
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Hello! We've been given power and responsibility and responsibility can't be delegated, like, EVER. HELLO! We need to get out there and see what we can do to salvage the situation. It's going to be hard work but we need to get out there and do it!
Wait for it, child. Wait. Like the ocean, the tides of opportunity ebb and flow, rise and fall and... NOW! There's the window you've been seeking. Quickly now, while she's away, if you're not a coward and want to sit here all day drinking tea1
Alice will wait for their hostess to head to get something to drink, then quietly pick up Zeek, holding him tight and making their way out the front door, a brief note saying 'Sorry, work called' left at the table for Ms. Sauta.
Once they are outside, Alice will attempt to get out of line of sight of the windows of the tea shoppe and not go down the alley in particular that all the madness is happening in YET -- they aren't steady in this outfit and they don't want to wobble to their death, after all. After getting to a reasonably safe spot away, they will slowly and quietly mutter 「Cresting. Tide. Naiad.」
It's safe to come out now, kiddo.
Today, she'd made new friends. At least, she considered them friends, even if they didn't consider her one yet. She'd helped to save someone's life, and lead things to a more peaceful resolution. Sure, it was what others did that had resolved things. But she'd tried. And it worked out.
Today, a friend she'd known less than a day had been torn apart before her eyes, trying to save another from the fate that befell them in their stead. He wasn't a bad person. He'd offered guidance and assistance. When he was after his trinket, he restrained himself from simply blasting things. He had his troubles as well. Perhaps he might have actually met a magical girl capable of helping him. She'd really hoped he would.
It didn't matter now. Paresh was dead. Killed trying to protect Miyako. Killed trying to save someone he cared for, regardless of his own safety. It was admirable. It was brave. It was utterly foolish and suicidal. It was the sort of thing she'd do herself. At least, she hoped it was. Because she surely hadn't done anything now.
Airi takes in the scene. The paranoid pair were together, escaped from the carnage. That was good. Both had good intentions somewhere. One had been condescending and narrow-minded. The other, convinced this was an attempt at usurping her. But they weren't so bad.
The "usurper" in question had fled. At the least, she was alive. She'd saved someone. But that someone could become a literal monster. There were ways to prevent that, but she needed one that wouldn't kill her. Because if there wasn't one, then Kazue couldn't be saved, and she'd just made things worse trying.
And then...Miyako and that lady. Now, she had no clue what had Miyako supposedly done. But this lady had tried to kill someone. Not to protect others, but in sheer spite and bloodlust. And now, her almost victim had the chance to do it to her. Oh, how she wanted to join in. To make her bones resonate until they broke and ruptured her inside and out. But she had to restrain herself, lest she become as bad as her. The fact it would be so satisfying would only be the start.
Honestly, Airi was an idiot in just about every way possible for her. It was pretty much deliberate. Smart people didn't try to help everyone, to save everyone. So she didn't want to be smart. She wanted to be the idiot that tried to save everyone, whoever they were, whatever they'd done. Even if she might make things worse. Even if she hated the people she intends to save. For all it was dumb and painful to do so. So, so painful.
So, the idiot walked over to where the latest bad situation was. And tried again. 「Having fun here? Everyone wants to kill everyone else today. And I'm sick of it. I know you don't care, none of you do, since I'm just the ignorant brat. But can you listen? I didn't really know Paresh that well. But I'm sure he wouldn't want you to be a killer, Miy-Chrysanth.」 Airi looks to Juno, sad more than angry. Barely. 「And I know you killed him. You made these ashes. And if it wasn't him, it would be her. Do you care? Does it matter to you that someone is dead by your hand? Or only who it was, and what it means for you? You did this, after all. Can you at least accept fault for it?」
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
For a moment Tiresias feared. She feared for the cornered monster in its cage about to be released. She feared for Junpei, now a magical girl, and the life he was going to have now. She feared for Kaguya, for what she had done to her, and for Kaguya's reaction to her offer for help. When Kaguya rolled to her arms at least one of her fears was gone. She held her close and lifted the small girl from the ground with her.
Whatever was going to happen at least she would be safe, she had already lost so much today, her friends and team, even her appearance. As Tiresias ran towards the limo she heard the sound of chains. A quick look behind and she saw the golden links sprout from the ground. Obviously they belonged to Juno, they practically oozed her characteristic opulent style. They were spikier that normal though and they were right under Chrysanth.
Tiresias almost dropped Kaguya as she saw what Juno had in store for her student, she turned towards Juno this time a pleading look on her face for merely a second before the sound of moving chains was heard again. Tiresias looked back and she saw the last moments of her other student, Paresh. As his bits toppled to the floor Tiresias froze, it felt just like a really bad horror movie, for a moment she couldn’t believe it to be true. She found everything she could to convince herself that none of that was actually happening, magic wasn’t real, that was not her student, no one had just been ripped to pieces in front of her because none of that could be happening but the weight of Kaguya in her arms kept reminding her that it was real, too real in fact.
She closed her eyes and bit her lip. She didn’t look back, she couldn’t look back, as she continued to approach the limo. As she reached it she gazed at Airi and Chrysanth one last time. In that moment she felt shame, she felt like she was deciding between two forming factions and for a moment she felt grief. She wished she could comfort Chrysanth, she wished Airi was wrong and Juno was innocent and she wished none of that mattered and they could be a team and not a fractured group.
Unlike the flashy display that was originally shown to them on the stairs May actually seemed impressed with this room as her eyes move slowly across it trying to take it all in while her enjoying the 'book smell'.
She approaches the model of the city and gives it her attention but it's clear she's mostly just being polite and would rather be focused on the books. "So in theory I could just 'wish' us any place here and we'd be there?"
|
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
"You... arrogant bastard!" For a moment Juno forgets Chrysanth entirely, her rage again focused entirely on the person who had really started this whole mess.
"Do you feel light-headed up on the moral high ground? Or does it bring your minuscule cock pleasure to get to be the good guy, saving the weak from the strong? Obviously what I did has nothing to do with your lecturing, you were just protecting a murderer from justice moments ago!"
At that, Juno stops and realizes: that is what she is now, isn't it? A murderer. And yet, she does not seem to care all that much. Paresh had hardly even registered as a person for Juno; why, if Airi had not spoken his name Juno would not even know it.
What matters to Juno is her mother, and what happened to her. Embarrassed, defamed, insulted. Juno looks to Chrysanth as she continues, "I am done here. If any of you rats wish to try desecrating my family further, then I will be happy to show you what more I can do." She returns to the limo, more than a little surprised that Tiresias is coming with but too scared to question it, and commands the driver to return home.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
"PARESH!" Comes the screech of sheer panic and anguish as Chrysanth tries to push herself up, watching in horror as what had might as well been her only friend was torn asunder. She scrambles over to the severed remains, looming over the lifeless pieces as the white skull mask began weeping black tears. Everything else in the alley, all the noise, the commotion, the movement, the scattered magical girls were all forgotten as she stared down at the still face, her hands clenched around the dual trinkets.
She murmurs in disbelief as the golden fire slowly burns away what was left of the poor young man. She fruitlessly tries to pull Paresh away from the fractured broom and bat away the flames on his chest, weeping as she what evidence remained was reduced to ash in her hands. She holds her masked face, absently grinding the cinders against the bone, letting them mingle with the ichor trailing down the cheeks.
Chrysanth quickly retakes her feet, brandishing her mace and cane as she turns to confront Juno once more, crackling with black lightning and ablaze with what could only be described as purple flames, unconsciously loosing the new burning plasma at the girl and finding herself unconcerned with the convenient magical mishap. "MURDERER! SOCIOPATH! IGNORANT HARPY!" She shouts through her sobs. "INSECURE WHELP! USELESS CHILD! GAUDY FAKE! GLUTTONOUS PIT!" The only thing keeping her from pouring every once of her magic into her burning insults and fueling the spectres surrounding Juno was the tight grip on the cane, and Airi's solemn words.
Sakura nervously heads towards the pipe, intent on walking across.
「All I wanted was a reason not to hate you. But no. You start yelling about arrogance - which is f~!+ing rich, frankly - and a fetish for being the good guy, no care for what you've done. I just wanted a non-lethal solution when nobody else did. Does, even. So, whatever. Sagara Junpei, arrogant rat. The person with a problem with you and nobody else. You know who I am now, so let's see what you do with that. I don't know who you or your family are, but frankly, I have no reason to care right now. Leave with White and Aratani, who you don't belong with. You've desecrated your family more than we ever could. Unrepentant murder and a lust to continue is going to look lovely in the history of your family. Especially when you had the choice not to.」
Tiresia's eyes watered a bit as she heard the words being flung around the alley. Paresh's body wasn't even cold and people couldn't respect him. She approached Juno with Kaguya still in her arms and placed a hand reassuringly on her arm. She nodded at Kaguya and spoke.
「Juno, don't listen to her. She needs your help now, more than ever, please help her. Not yourself.」
Tiresias hoped that the presence of her mother and her pleading tone would soothe the girl and prevent the situation from escalating further. Then she turned to Airi.
「Junpei, please. Someone died today. Whatever punishment you want to inflict can wait. I'm tired and spent, we all are. Please, as respect for the dead, let us mourn. We can settle this when next we meet.」
Finally she looked Chrysanth in the eyes, her own face hardening to match her feelings.
「Chrysanth, I can't begin to understand what you are going through so I won't pretend I do. Paresh was my student and therefore my responsibility and I failed him. Trust me, whatever restitution must be done it will be. Please don't desecrate his memory by becoming a murderer yourself. Mourn, like I will.」
Before entering the limo she again gazed at Airi with a look that said help her more than anything else.
"So, the titles determine what we do. Can do, or are supposed to do?" she wonders aloud.
"I guess our mutual boss took my magical girl away, then, until we can find the answer to that question." she says, clenching, then unclenching her fist, though she seems not to notice. "Maybe..." she looks over to May, "Do you think you could try to use your book to take us to information on ourselves? A magic book in a library filled with information on the subject we need information on..." she shrugs. "Sounds like a lot of things line up there for all of your... what were they called again? Trinkets and Domains? Does her essence affect her in any positive ways?" she says, looking to Suzu.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Juno...I wonder which of her names that is. Not that important right now.
Airi shoots an angry look at Tiresias...which vanishes almost as fast as it arrived. It doesn't take much longer for her to start losing her composure, tears welling up. 「I know. I-I know. I didn't k-know him so much as y-you or her. But I wanted to. He s-seemed like a good guy.」 At this point, it's taking everything not to bawl. 「I-I just want an apology, not a p-punishment. I don't feel like I'll get it. Sorry...like she'll get it. N-not now. But now isn't the time anyway.」
She starts wiping away the tears. 「C-can I have your name? Something so we can t-talk later? When we next meet is nice, but I-I don't know when that'll be. And we really need to talk.」
When Tiresias enters the limo, she gets the hint. She doesn't have any time to be selfish right now. Not with Miyako like this. She'll have to hold on a little longer. 「H-hey, Chrysanth? Would you like some tea? Let's gather up the a-ashes and get something for you. Anything you want. Sound good?」 Gently, carefully, she takes Miyako away from the limo.
| 3 people marked this as a favorite. |
Chrysanth seethed, shaking as the burning plasma flared and roared around her sporadically. She had experienced loss so many years before, but nothing hurt so much as the death of her friend, death of what felt like her second chance of living her life free of her crippling fears. The ominous gaze of her skull mask, now stained in black tears and ash, bore down on Juno, giving the horrific impression of being marked by Death itself.
The blinding rage she felts slowly warped back into debilitating anguish as Airi and Tiresias talked her down. She again fell to her knees and dropped the can of mace, hugging the cane to her chest in both hands as the dark ichor continued to flow down the bone mask, sobbing over the pile of ash. She leans against Airi as the newly christened magical girl did her best to ease her sorrow, taking what comfort she can until she regains enough sense to collect what remained of the late Dhital Paresh.
|
|
| 3 people marked this as a favorite. |
In the back seat of the limo, away from the ears of Juno's newfound enemies, a new fear crawls over her back. It whispers in a harsh, biting voice, "Murderer... villain... they will avenge him... they will kill you... and you will deserve it..."
Juno curls up into a ball, sobbing softly into her knees.
Naiad walks in on the scene of carnage, Zeek the pomeranian on their heels. The arcane fog rolls away and disperses. There is a limo parked across the alley, and the engine rumbles to life. The identities of those who had come and are now leaving is obscured by the tinted windows of the bright pink vehicle.
In the alley, the new magical girl crouches near a distraught Chrysanth, who is kneeling to her thighs in ashes. Runnels of black tears carve paths through the ash on her face and muddle on the front of her dress. She seems to be holding the tanuki girl’s much-disputed cane.
There is a pool skimmer laying on the ground nearby, as well as a polished wooden hairpin and an antique compact mirror. Ayatori is eyeing the scene uneasily from the roof of the neighboring business. It’s getting dark.
Kaguya mutters the words to shift back to her normal form, and cringes as the form she takes is not the one she’s most comfortable in. The Mistress Shirakawa bears the signs of her age publicly for once, as well as a clouded eye. Her body tenses, and it looks like she’ll submit to another fit of weeping, but she relaxes, slumping in her seat. 「I suppose I am over-reacting.」 It doesn’t seem like it’s registered yet that her daughter just murdered someone in her honour. It’s not clear if she saw. She looks dazed, and is looking down at her hands like it’s been a long time since she’s seen them. 「I... don’t see what came over me. Everyone was talking so fast, and the next minute you cut through my magic. I suppose I shouldn’t do that to other people like I have been. It is quite humbling...」
The driver turns over the engine, and you can both see Naiad rounding the corner outside.
As you are walking to the pipe, along the brook, you see a straight path of trampled grass on the opposite bank. On your side, the trail leads back toward the houses you came from, but not toward your neighbor’s house. You keep it in mind to investigate as you approach the pipe.
Crossing the pipe is a non-issue. Even Tomoyo manages it. You don’t know why adults make such a big deal about walking across poles and pipes and things. You’ve never bumped your head even once.
There is a footpath that follows the brook on this side, it probably leads back to the street. You’re able to find your way back to the small, trampled path you saw before. You’re pretty sure it’s headed in the direction you were headed, more or less. Although, you did walk along the brook to find it. Usually, animal trails weave and wander, but this one’s so straight it’s hard to miss. The trail cuts a path through some tall brush and a stand of trees. It’s getting dark. In the distance, in the general direction you were headed, but aside from the trampled animal path, there is an orange light that shifts and moves.
“The titles shape you and are shaped by you. They’re not a part of the Magi’s name you inherit.”
Suzu seems to shake awake, then look to May. 「Yes, I think that’s about it. I mean, you’d go in one door and come out another. Like I said, cantrips are low-risk. It’s not like if you get it wrong you’ll end up in some kind of pocket dimension from which there is no escape. Worst that could happen is you miss a bit and can turn around and try again. -or, I guess you might just go through the door, and nothing happen.」
The attention of the room continues to shift from the model to the books, and Suzu is more than happy to oblige. The wane evening light coming in from the dome above casts long shadows.「That would be a super great idea, Hashimoto-san, considering most of these texts aren’t in Japanese, and almost none are in English. This would be a place where her Domain crosses with the Seer’s. Speaking of whom, if using a translation book doesn’t exactly seem like it fits your needs, then think it into something more convenient. It’s got something better inside now, but only your heart knows what it is. Maybe it’s not for this, but it’ll come out when you know what it is. If you’d like to try, trust your instincts. Just, don’t let on to my Mistress that you’ve got such a great way of reading her collection. She generally thinks people can be made to cooperate, especially when they have a talent she covets. What else did you ask? The essence? Blood makes you really hard to kill, feathers make you a territorial spaz case, and balefire makes you cryptic and facetious.」
There had been another accident somewhere in the middle of the village. Aes Sidhe were dropping like flies here, and it did not seem to have anything to do with the shadow. At least the mark of Aries was free now, and you have access to the region’s lode.
You crouch on the roof of a small residential building eating a quick dinner to keep your energy up. Down below, another of those snake vassals is making its way in the direction of the condemned building in the north east. That was the third you’ve seen tonight.
There’s another sign of movement in the wild growth between the streets. Two small girls are playing by a brook. “'Least one o' them is hunting shadows.” Muirgel announces her return as if you hadn’t heard her flow up the water spout. Calling her out would probably start a meaningless argument. "I think she's a waerloga, though. This place be teemin' with 'em. If'n ye donnae see yerself facin' the lot now, I'd say ye'd be better off taking the north node first. It be in flux now."
For all the fuss this is what you came back to? A pile of ash, no tanuki, no huge epic fight -- why are we here again?
Naiad slowly approaches, ducking down into the shadows of the alley of the encroaching evening, definitely keeping an eye on Ayatori.
They're hurting. Broken. We need to help them. What happened? We need to know!
「Not quite sure what the heck happened here after I got hauled away -- but could I get the Cliff's Notes right quick? Is there anything I can do to help? Are either of you hurt? And what were you burning back here to get that much ash?」
We don't have time for this. There's some sort of thing going on back at the mall. If we don't get there to stop it NOW then it doesn't matter who we help or don't help.
If we don't help, then we aren't any better than whoever or whatever caused this mess. Not on my watch, not in my Navy. Please shut up and stop being such a *****.
Fine. When this all blows up on you I get to say 'I told you so'!
Naiad will attempt to walk over and pick up the mirror carefully while talking. Something that expensive looking should be protected from further damage.
|
|
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
"...Cut through?" The words struck at Juno's heart like a heavy spear. Juno had been sure that her mother's true form had been warped into something ugly, something disgusting, and she had blamed Miyako for it.
But seeing her now, as simply an old, tired woman, Kiyomi understands. Chrysanth had done nothing to her mother; all that happened was that Tiresias, for reasons unknown had removed Kaguya's illusions. What Juno saw was not a mockery, but simply the truth.
And it had upset her so much that she killed a man because of it.
"Pointless... All for nothing... You fool... You fool... You fool..."
When Alex speaks up, Airi's eyes quickly turn to him from her charge. 「Junpei here. That ash is Paresh. A magical girl named Juno's responsible. I don't know which name that is. We're fine physically. Not emotionally. Everything lying about is a trinket. Grab them. Hand them to the people in the limo. Tell them they're invited for tea sometime. Leave them alone after. Find something to store the ashes, and help me comfort her.」 It's fairly clear Airi is making an effort not to cry as much as Miyako. She could probably do with comfort herself, but there's no way she'd ask.
With that, she goes back to Miyako. The disk is dismissed, and if Miyako is comfortable with it, she wipes off her face and holds her. 「Let it out. Let it all out. I'm here for you. And I swear, I will do all in my power to ensure I always am.」 She hums a little tune...sorrowful, but soothing. And remains attentive to the mourning girl.
Naiad is somewhat jolted as they pick up the mirror, hair standing on end almost comically for a second before falling back down.
「There's something REALLY weird with this. I don't think giving it back is such a good idea, yet. Call it a hunch?」
Dutifully, though, they gather up the remaining items but pauses as they hear Junpei She's kind of cute, even! attempting to console Miyako.
The relics are placed down reverentially near the other two.
We help the living first, then the fallen. Life first, mourn later. That second thought is odd, because it is unlike the almost bickering that's been in their mind but rather a firm harmony, two points of view in complete unison.
They stand over to Miyako and Junpei and attempt to place a hand on each of their shoulders, gently, respectfully.
"The night is always darkest before the dawn, the battle grimmest when no hope is to be found. Get back on your feet, kids. We aren't beaten, we have work to do, and we're going to do it right. Not just 'because', but for the fact that now we have a Really Good Reason to do so. Alright?"
Naiad is full of hope despite the circumstances. They attempt to take some of the pain from the one who is hurting the most, much like the ocean has crests and troughs of waves.
The aquatic warder shoulders the burden themselves in an effort to bolster the other two watch-standers, ever aware given their limited experience that such things always hurt, but that pain heals, chicks dig scars, and glory is forever.
「You good to go?」