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Conway's head bounces between Connie and Femtite a few times, and then seems to pick up their relationship. He stammers a bit then focuses on Connie's barrage of questions.
"Which of your dolls were acquired secondhand?"
"Um, none. Or wait. I mainly get them from Infini-shop, or Infini-bay, or camp for delivery day at brick-and-mortar if I get a tip."
"Were any of these sources strange or give off uncomfortable or overly comfortable vibes?"
"Not... that I can think of?"
"Which dolls were acquired from the same sources?"
"Wow, like, I don't have that good a memory. I could look through my purchase history in Infini-shop, I guess."
"Which dolls would you say you have the strongest emotional connection too?"
"Well, all the ones here... I left a lot at home. I think my Tinklebrie, the limited Ladies of the Alliance run..."
"Have any of the dolls or the characters they depict appeared in any dreams?"
"Gosh. Not... no, not that I can think of."
"Have you experienced any other unnerving phenomena in this room that weren't doll related?"
"That's just it! No!"
The trio cautiously descend the steps into the basement. At the bottom of the steps, Indarius immediately sees that he doesn't need to continue to use his flashlight because there are lights -- orange-tinted incandescent bulbs. He also sees that there is the residue of a powerful ward at the base of the steps, but it is no longer functioning.
The basement is actually somewhat cozy if a little on the musty-smelling side. The walls are either paneled with wood or covered with curtains. Against the walls are numerous pedestals covered in arcane marks, though their displays are empty. Old bookshelves line one side of the room, containing a number of books with vibrant print along their spines. Metal folding chairs are set around an old folding table in the center of the room. The table has a colorful map spread out upon it, and small figurines placed in around it.
There is a person, male, roughly in his twenties, focused intently upon the center of the table. Several books are open in front of him.
He looks up at Indarius, DD, and Caio. And suddenly bursts out laughing. Oh, my gods, who are you supposed to be?"
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"We are The Big Bad Wolf Caio, Red Riding Hood Max and Granny Percy... And it looks like you are short on players for your game session." He says, pointing at the books, maps and figurines, while also looking for the dice.
"We're looking for Doctor Infinity. Is that you?" Max asks warily.
Shit! Can she hear my thoughts in this thing? Huh, if we get this transportable it would completely remove the need for any kind of safew- Wow I hope she's not hearing this. She'd tell me if she was hearing this, right?
"Hey Femms? Can you hear when I think at you like this? How about other times? Can I redact thoughts? I didn't think of myself as into sporty gals, but you in those shorts?! I wanted to take an absolute bite out of that peach."
There's probably bleedthrough if you're not careful. Though obviously I am kissable enough that she could have just been saying that... Probably bleedthrough.
"No magical reasons to kiss here I'm afraid, but hey, if the answers aren't here then we're heading somewhere with some privacy..."
***
"Welp. No hits. Don't worry about it though Conway. Mysteries like this are like 90% a waste of time until something pans out."
"You okay to head out and over, Femms?"
“Sure, maybe we check out the old building and afterward stop at the local fruit stand. I’ve never tried peaches before, but I am sure I will find them satisfactorily juicy and delectable!”
She smiles sweetly at Conway, “I’ll let you know if anything comes up at the old building. If not, keep your eyes peeled for oddities …and leave any change as-is. Like a crime scene in one of those shows where the detectives get the yellow tape and say things like, sorry ma’am, I know you loved him, but please do not cross the yellow tape. It literally says ‘do not cross’ right on it.”
Femtite happily heads to the old building with Connie.
"Okay," Conway says as it appears there's a dead end at his place. "Bye. Um, good luck proving I'm not crazy." He slowly shuts the door after they leave.
The old structure that now contains the administrative offices of Halcyon Prep is called Walden Hall, named after the school's founder Dr. Horatio C. Walden. It's a stately old building of red brick with white features, tall white columns at the entrance, and ivy climbing the walls.
The investigation into the building's history recounts that the bell used to be rung religiously every morning at 6 a.m. as part of Dr. Walden's belief that students should "rise early to learn all day." However, the long-standing practice ended roughly a year ago after constant petitions and complaints from the students and lately their parents.
With the bell tower no longer in use, the maintenance of the bell has become slack. It appears that no one has been to the top of the tower in weeks. A security system in place could account for other comings and goings in the rest of the building.
Femtite cannot find anything to be a major threat, though the bell is certainly a heavy object and if it were to fall it would cause serious damage to the building.
====================
The twenty-something tries to stifle another laugh when Max asks him if he's Doctor Infinity. He's not successful and chuckles a bit more. "Damn, if could have kept a straight face... I totally would have messed with you."
He leans back in his chair -- one of the comfier folding chairs with actual padding -- and gets a better look at the trio. "Okay, Caio, Max and Percy," he says, still holding back a chuckle, "I've already started the game. So you'll have to wait." He gestures to the table with the map and figures. Caio can definitely spot a number of dice at Not-Dr. Infinity's place.
Max cocks her head at the man and the battlemap. "Uh huh. Anything we can do to help?”
"Who are you, by the way?" Caio adds, intrigued, to the man that is apparently finding their presence here amusing.
The man appeared to be a Game Master, but if so, it would make no sense to say that the game has already started, since there were no players there. Approaching the table, he tries to understand what is going on, looking at the maps and figurines specially.
The man's smile fades slightly. "... You can call me Quincy." He glances down at the board for a quick moment, then focuses back on the three. He doesn't stand up, but he shifts in his seat to face them more directly.
Caio sees that the map is a thing of beauty; full color, showing rolling hills, crystal-blue waters, snow-capped mountains and stout castles. The figures are intricately carved and immaculately painted to the point that they look almost lifelike. It appears that currently a group of four adventurers are on a road through a verdant forest.
"So... how'd you break in here, anyway? I thought there wasn't any way to find this place. Old Doctor 'I' hasn't been seen in years."
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Indarius looks at the walls stripped bare of their tomes and magical runes with almost shock. But focuses on quickly to the only other person in the room rather quickly. He's about to answer when Caio just sort of mouth diarrheas the group's actual names. Have to deal with that later really should have made that a rule.
Moving closer while looking at the other spaces he tried to get a look at what was going on at the table. Watching the pieces closely. "Could ask you the same thing, given it looks like you've been here long enough to get comfortable. As for how that's not super important now that we're here is it? What happened to all the things that were stored here?"
Quincy leans back in his chair and idly spins a die on the tip of his finger. "Cleared out. Sold, or bartered away. It happens," he says casually.
"Finish this joke for me: 'A wizard, a succubus, and a werewolf walk into a basement..."
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The fact that someone could just casually throw away all the written knowledge. Then to just sit there and talk about it so casually.
"And are asked to roll for initiative?" He waves that off and continues trying to ignore the audacity. "We aren't here for a fight, just here looking for information that only Dr. Infinity would hold. Information all the books here would have held, so we need to know where they've gone."
"... and found a funny man who thinks to be the smart man in the room. The wizard tried to talk to the man, understanding what was going on. The succubus, throwing her charm tried to seduce the man, trying to end this quickly without too much trouble. The Werewolf burped... comedians give him gases." Caio says as he approaches the man, not liking where this is going.
"Shit. Don't know how I missed that this was a building still in use... That's gonna muddle any kind of trail."
"And pull a lot of time away from makeouts... Shit. Uh, disregard?" Eh, that one wasn't actually that embarrassing. "I changed my mind. You can regard."
"Whatever, let's start with the bell tower. Without more knowledge of what's going on, it's the best location for most ritual or supernatural weirdness. I figured we'd just be able to spot whatever'd been disturbed and go from there, but if people come through most of this building...
Her current outfit had basically no pockets, just a cold shoulder meshy crop top and the skater skirt she'd worn to seduce Femms before. So she had to be a little more obvious about producing a new curio and go directly to the duffle bag she'd brought along too.
...timed this reveal badly... So we'll have to bring out the big guns."
Nailed it?
The portable barcode reader at the heart of her artefact looked like it had had a lot of features, but she'd carefully erased the inky markings that should have said what they would do and carefully replaced them with her own.
I should see if Percy would be willing to do a blood drive. I'm almost out of good sources of MAGICK to feed this thing.
"Like I said, we'll start here and then just work our way down until someone tries to kick us out."
Connie comes up with a plan!
“Okay—fair warning, the bell tower is full of birds’ nests. So just direct me to get as close as you want me—“
Femtite could pilot Love Bug, The, but she can defy gravity and the Mind-Link is on so—
“Oh! You can clip Love Bug, The on your wrist accessory or in your hair. Then you can hold stuff and still send me thoughts.”
Connie is pretty light weight, and Femtite is built more for jogging than squats, and more for squats than arm sports such as lifting and chin-ups and frisbee.
She is pretty sure that carrying Connie will be easy if she starts by placing her elbow under Connie’s leg… “And don’t be afraid to lean on my face, now your other leg… no. I wonder if Conway’s doll is watching thi—ah, I know!” Femtite hovers so her feet are no longer on the ground, she then wraps her arms and legs around Connie. It’s not graceful, but at least there’s no chance she’ll drop her!
“It may surprise you to know I’ve—haha!—never actually carried anyone before. Ha! Going up! Uuuuuup? Ha! Don’t look down! EE—“ Femtite clings tighter.
Her body warms from the thrill, but she gets Connie to the bell tower safely in her kraken/giftwrap grip!
Quincy isn't intimidated. "Why don't you back the f%~! off, furry, before something bad happens." He still doesn't stand up, but he snatches the spinning die and holds it tightly in a fist.
He glances over at Indarius and waves his hand at the bare walls and shelves sporting nothing but gaming books. "Well, I don't think Dear Old Dad kept receipts or anything. And the crap he couldn't sell is all just trinkets and penny-ante magic.
"So. I've been a good host and answered your questions. You still haven't told me how you got in here. I thought this place was unfindable."
===================
Connie employs her scanner and examines the top of the bell tower for signs of the supernatural. At first, she doesn't get anything. The old and weathered bricks were showing their age -- being high in the air and constantly exposed to the elements. But nothing screamed supernatural. That is, until she pointed her device at the bell itself.
Sweeping the scanner around the outside doesn't get a read of anything special. The interior of the bell, however, reports intricate designs etched into the casting. Upon closer inspection, Conflux realizes that the etchings are inlaid with another metal -- cold iron. The sigils and runes within the bell, coupled with the cold iron, would have made the bell's ringing debilitatingly painful to any fey creature within earshot. The peals of the bell would no doubt protect the school from fey influence.
Just as Connie realizes this, she notices one other thing while standing inside the bell: The clapper is gone.
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"Ack. Giant firefly on my everywhere," Connie teased as Femms somehow managed to get them safely? up to the belltower. "Don't worry though. Lots of firsts going around here..."
"Ah. Crap. Well, the good news is that it should be pretty easy to solve Conway's mysterious doll problems. Y'see here?"
She led Femms over to look at the inside of the bell, tracing the air just above the etched sigils with her fingers. "These are for chasing off the fey, which is good for Conway because while it is very hard to keep them out of somewhere they really want to be, it is very easy to keep them out of somewhere they kinda want to be."
"So the real problem is that you usually don't put the effort into building something like this and ensuring its regular use unless there's either substantially higher than average fey activity, [smaller]or a reason why fey activity here could be far more destructive than typical."
She grimaced. "Also, this is good work. That means that the clapper probably had some defenses so it wouldn't have been trivial for the fey to steal. Add that to a 'grass-roots campaign' to unring this particular bell, and I'd wager that the fey have either an ally, or someone trying to use their mischief to their own advantage."
"Well, at least we found the next questions." The worried look in her eyes vanished, replaced by a bright, bright gleam of excitement. "Now we just need to find the right beings to ask."
"Okay, we need a horseshoe for Conway, table salt for us, and the best bread, fruit, and honey we can find for our new friends."
"So. I've been a good host and answered your questions. You still haven't told me how you got in here. I thought this place was unfindable."
"I guess it's not so unfindable as you thought," Max says. "Percy here is a very good wizard. He figured out how to find the hidden building using mirrors and reflections. Then he magicked us through our own reflections so we could come here. And now that we're here, he'd be very disappointed if we left empty-handed..."
Femtite looks like a fairy herself as she becomes Barbie-sized to fly inside the bell.
When Connie says fey, Femtite almost seems to miss it—but the phrase ‘the right beings’ widens those fairy eyes with excitement.
Connie gets an immediate hug, which is basically Femtite throwing her fairy body against Connie’s cheek. She gives a tiny kiss, pulls back and grows back and her amethyst eyes are locked onto Connie’s.
“You’re brilliant! I really would never have figured this out without you. I’m so glad did this together—” She gives Connie a warm hug. Not as tight as when she carried her, and using half as many limbs. “—just you and me. I don’t care if this counts as a date or not.”
Femtite is even more excited to know there’s more to do.
“So next step is what? Head to the local fruit stand for real, and no supermarket is so super it has horseshoes, so… two stops. As much as I enjoy your voice in my head, I’ll need to drive Love Bug, The.”
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Percy rubs the back of his head, "Ermm well yeah that pretty much sums it up. I didn't know Infinity had a son though. Can't say I really knew him either." He lowers and slows his voice trying to bring the tension in the room back down.
"Can you tell us who he might have sold his books to? I can't imagine he would actually get rid of all that information on magic for spare change. So there's got to be some other reason right?" Percy tries to get a read on if Quincy is telling the truth about being the child of the fabled Dr. Infinity and what the slightly older prodigy might be up to.
Quincy chews his lip as he thinks. He gives Max a long look, sizes up Caio, and then focuses on Percy. "'Very good wizard' in the company of a demon and a werewolf..." he muses aloud. "Yeah, no. I don't owe you anything. I--" he stops and shouts at the table, "I said you were walking! It's a long way to the fortress, all right?!
He turns back to the trio. "Sorry about that. Now, you were just about to leave? Unless you want to show just how good a wizard you really are?" He holds up the twenty-sided die again.
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Percy looks to DD and Caio, he had told them not to make any deals that was part of the three rules. He told them not to fight either. He didn't want to make a deal, nor fight himself. But Quincy was the only person who had information on what may have happened to Dr. Infinity's legacy of spellwork.
"I don't want to fight you." His hand tightened on the staff, "But I need to know where those books went to help my friends." He looked to them both and widened his stance and planted his staff not in a threatening manner but to fully assert himself.
"And I'm the best damn wizard in Halcyon."
Max grins and nods. ”Yeah, let’s do it!”
Connie gently leans into the pixie-sized hug, but takes the full hug very awkwardly, barely getting past hoverhands-ing Femms in return. "Well it's not all set yet," she demurs, "We're still just in the hypothesis stages. We should probably get some mistletoe too...heh..."
"Sooner or later we'll also have to figure out a signal for that that doesn't make me feel three feet tall...
Y'know? Nah. When I'm feeling toppy I can just do this."
She reached up to take Femms's chin between finger and thumb and guided her mouth down for a brief but hungry kiss.
"Okay, work's not over yet. We need high quality food, ideally low on preservatives etc. Free produce is never gonna be gift grade, so that means it's barter time at the farmers' market, we can also pick up some flowers there if the selection's what we need, so possible twofer.
"You're right that we won't find a horseshoe there though, or at least not one that's going unused. So you might think livery, or farrier or police station, but unfortunately modern horseshoes have upgraded to steel instead of iron, which makes them a lot less useful for our purpose. But luckily for us, iron is cheaper than steel, so if we go somewhere that's selling horseshoes as tchotchkes instead of for use, we're set.
"So yes if you're keeping score, I'm suggesting we go to the farmers' market, maybe hit a plant nursery, and then go boutiquing."
Connie grinned with a more comfortable pride than she'd shown while Femms was actually praising her.
"Can I plan a work-date or what?"
"Wow... let's not get hasty, ok? I think we don't need to measure whose magic wand is bigger." Caio asks, putting himself between Percy and Quincy, his claws on his back to show good faith. To think that the most menacing in the room was trying to be the mediator was nothing but ridiculous.
"Quency, we started with the wrong foot here. Let's try again?" He asks, looking at everyone. "We came here because we wanted Dr. Infinity's help and, failing that, perhaps finding said help in some books that could have been left behind. We knocked on the door, and it opened for us. We thought we were welcomed to enter."
He turns then to Percy and Max. "As it turns out, the Doctor isn't here and neither are his books, but the place is not empty. If Quency is the Doctor's son, this house belongs to him... even if there were books, they would also belong to him and if he doesn't want to help us, we have no right to force him."
Back to Quency, he adds. "If you want us to go, we will. You are in your right, and we won't even get the word on how to find this place to others, since you also has the right to your privacy... NOW..." He points to the board, dice, and figurines. "... I'm pretty sure you've trapped your players in your world. If they are not in real danger and agreed with that, congratulations, for you might be one of the best GMs around... but if not..." He lets the threat linger. "What happens to them if their characters die?"
“So it does count.”
Femtite smiles sweetly, skin radiating pink heat from the kiss.
* * *
In transit, in Love Bug, The, Femtite gives Conway a quick call.
”HI hiiiiiiii!! Good news, Conway! You are officially not crazy. The missing quills are not found, but we have a good lead. Details when we know more! Oh, and for the modeling, I can grow wings, in case you want to make Tinklebrie outfits.”
Unless Connie wants to provide more details, Femtite is happy to keep the call to Conway short and sweet.
As for the ‘work’ part of the work-date, Femtite asks, “How does this bartering work? Is there something I can do to help?”
Connie scrunched up her mouth, tongue visibly wiggling from cheek to cheek while she figured out how to explain. "So it's kind of an outgrowth of my whole urban survival stuff. You know how we as a city and a culture waste like, a lot of stuff. Food gets thrown away, rooms get left unused, all that kinda thing. Loving having a room and a mealplan right now bee-tee-dubs, but I've made my way with cast offs and hand-me-downs before I was on my own, and I got a whole bunch more practice with it then. So there are plenty of things available for free, or that are given away as long as you know how and when to ask, but that's usually not the premium stuff.
"So if you don't have money, you have to be able to barter, to give them a little something for the something you're getting back. For farmers and planters and most people who grow things, I've got an easy way in: Pest control.
"I've got a lot of non-toxic non-harmful ways to give bugs and varmints bad vibes, and my good friend Suze is happy to vouch for them to any growers at the farmer's market she directs and swap me for marketbucks to pay any real doubters. Bonus? That kind of introduction usually lets you get access to things like raw milk that generally won't get openly sold, but are very much fey approved."
She pursed her lips. "So I'm not sure it's the bartering I'll need help... I think I'll need your eye more. As a some-time garbage goblin, I sometimes overlook flaws in presentation that would be better to avoid, and this is where princess-y protocol could come in real handy."
***
At the farmer's market, Connie happily walked along, hand in hand with Femms as they surveyed the various booths.
"Okay, so for food, we definitely want raw milk and some nice honey, but for the bread and fruit we should go with whatever you think looks and smells like an appropriate gift or, uh, tribute. Same goes for the flowers. We've got some options there, but there's a specific message we need to send. We'll need some Mistletoe, which we might need to hunt down elsewhere 'cause it's seasonal, even though it is literally in season, and then... I dunno, maybe Wisteria? Probably not in season. Star of Bethlehem or Sticky Catchfly? Worst comes to worst some tulips blue or pink of course, or even some yellow roses would be fine, so it's really just what speaks to you."
Abruptly she realized how long she'd been rattling things off and gave Femms a searching look. "Did that make sense?"
Femtite nods. She looks wayyyy too confident for someone who isn’t saying anything. She’s just staring at the flowers. Mind-link off…
She finally says, “Okay… first off, the Sticky Catchfly is a big no-no. It screams, ‘trap.’ You don’t need me to think like a princess.” Femtite shrinks, grows wings, and magical-girls on a Tinklebrie dress. “But like a fairy!”—she magical-girls a tiara on her head—“…princess.”
She tip-toes through the tulips, flits upon a star, poses among roses. She doesn’t do anytwith the Wisteria because she’s already made up her mind—“Yellow roses! They are bright like the sun, with stems lined with sharp thorns. The message they convey is:
“We recognize the danger—that anti-fey bell. Regardless of the reason it was created, it’s toll is a headache to all fey, deserving or innocent. But the rest of the message is—we are your ray of sunshine.”
Femtite hovers eye level with Connie, smiling shinily.
Connie beamed. "Yes! This is exactly what I was hoping for! I hadn't thought how much larger thorns would loom when you're smaller, but that's a great layer of meaning! This kind of thing is what makes magic so flexible and useful, it uses the metaphysical mass of different objects and concepts, but all that meaning is ultimately subjective! It takes a lot more work to push against the grain of how it's generally thought of, but that obviously varies with time and location, and just every factor you can conceive of and Ahhhhh! I love learning how people's minds work!"
"I still feel so shitty for hiding from your tiara. It was a perfect gift."
She smiled for a long moment, pulling her lips inside her mouth when she got too embarrassed, but she couldn't stay quiet for long. "The whole thing about the layers of meaning is very true too. Like, the roses on my back," she spun around so Femms could see them rising up from beneath her top. "They're red roses, so a lot of people immediately jump to love and passion and romance, and if they notice all the thorns, they get that it's not necessarily smooth sailing, but a rose can mean a lot more than that! It can be a symbol of transformation, like with Apuleius, contemplation and faith, which is why it's the basis of a rosary. Sometimes it also means secrets. You'll still see roses carved into the decor of some conference rooms because of the generations of conspirators that hid their secrets beneath the sign of the rose."
She paused in thought for a moment.
"But we're not trying to sneak a magic spell under anyone's nose, so I think it's best that we work in another flower that matches the sunshiny friendliness of the yellow rose. Two flowers that have the same vibe help show which interpretations you're leaning towards, instead of the way a single flower can hide things in conflicting layers of meaning. Let's add some Star of Bethlehem to the bouquet so they know to welcome the sun more than they fear the thorns."
Quincy smirks at Indarius' boast, and with Devil Diva's encouragement sparks almost fly. However, Caio steps in and somewhat surprisingly plays the role of peacemaker.
Quincy cocks his head in the direction of the table smiling smugly. "They signed up. It's not as fun without a little danger. When they die in game it hurts like hell, but they're not really dead. They're playing the heroes, after all!
"And I am the best GM around." He laughs.
The d20 in his hands flashes intensely, causing everyone's vision to go white!! Indarius, Devil Diva, and Caio suddenly feel like they're floating in space, not knowing which way is up. Quincy's laugh echoes in their ears all around them.
"Only the monsters stay dead."
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Reality snaps back into place around them. Or, some kind of reality. Indarius, Caio and Devil Diva find themselves in some kind of throne room made of dark grey stone, lit by flaming braziers and dark iron chandeliers. The throne is similarly made of dark iron, high-backed and full of sharp protrusions. A roaring fireplace heats a bubbling cauldron, while a black crystal globe sits on a pedestal next to the throne.
Percy is wearing wizard robes, made of a velvety black material trimmed with blood-red arcane symbols. Caio is in full werewolf mode, a massive spiked collar around his neck, and a simple loincloth around his waist. Max is wearing a skimpy and wholly impractical black dress straining to hold back her curves, stiletto heels, and ornate headdress. She finds herself holding the leash attached to Caio's collar.
A nearby balcony looks out over an idyllic fantasy world that matches up eerily to the map on the table.
Quincy's booming voice echoes out of the sky. "Okay, you're the evil wizard Percy threatening the peace and tranquility of the noble realm of Harrowguard, with your vile minions Caio the werewolf and the succubus... Max. Dudes and dudette, you're going to need better names than that. And you know what? Five on three isn't really all that fair. I'll let you pull a couple more allies in -- if you're strong enough."
Remarkably, you feel two of your allies within close proximity -- Steel Guardian and Horizon!
What do you do??
Caio feels a breeze coursing through places that they were not welcomed. "Hey, you f~@%er! At least give me some pants!!!"
Caio walks towards the window and slashes a piece of the curtain, improvising himself a kilt.
“Oh, your roses are very pretty!” Femtite flutters about Connie’s back, and will gladly observe other visible tattoos.
The not-smooth-sailing comment isn’t lost on her.
“You don’t have to feel bad about the gift, Connie. I can use Love Bug, The’s magenta done to show you…”
Femtite shrinks to nothing!
The magenta dome depicts what at first appears to be a forest, but it is actually the pistils of whatever yellow rose Femtite has landed on!
She shrinks even more until the microscopic parts of petals and leaves appear as alien landscapes.
I hope you enjoy seeing a rose up close! The sweetest part is the scent glands!
Femtite eventually grows to human size.
”Should I give you a close-up of the Star of Bethlehem too? Or shall we make our purchase without the thorough examination, and see if the fey truly accept our gift?”
"Yeah. At least they're pretty."
"How did you know just **how much** I would love seeing this, Femms?"
She sat on a nearby bench and marveled, eyes closed and limbs tucked in tight to her core. She was still happily shifting from side to side when Femtite regrew.
"Let's go home and see if we can't make some new friends."
"And if they take too long to show I'm sure we can entertain ourselves..." She blushed and brushed Love Bug, The back along with her hair.
"Though... like you said. They'll be watching. So we shouldn't get too uh, entertaining."
***
"Okay, saucer, plate, and bouquet are outside. I've got salt sprinkled over my dresser and valuables..."
She took a little jump up onto their couch and slid down off the arm into the seat before suddenly sitting upright and bounding back off the couch.
"Popcorn! Oh and you should grab a blanket, oh and I had a great idea. It's not like you eat popcorn for the nutritional value anyways, so let's just get you like a-" spitbucket "-wine tasting thing. You can try some, but we don't have to worry about it shrinking or growing with you or giving you popcorn belly or anything."
She grinned as she puttered around getting ready. "Oh and you still need to pick the movie. We've got Peter Pan, we've got Little Mermaid, and hey, I've recently been feeling the 'street rat shows a beautiful princess a whole new world vibe' so what the heck, we've got Aladdin too!"
"Wait!"
Like Caio, Max is taken aback by the wholly impractical dress she finds herself wearing. The skimpy outfit exposes wide swaths of her smooth, purple skin. She quicky drops Caio's leash and glares angrily up at the ceiling.
"Was the fetishwear really necessary? I don't know how you expect me to fight anything dressed like this!" She struggles to keep her balance between the high heels and the heavy headdress. She looks at Percy. "I'm thinking we're going to need all the help we can get."
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Percy shook his head which was full of black hair oil slicked back with a very deep widows peak. His robes were almost comically dark and ominous looking, and his skin was horribly pale as if he nor his forebears had seen the light of day. Around his waist sat hung several skulls and his staff was now topped with another which had Emerald gems for eyes. "Ooooh kay did not expect that to be the turn this was going to take. Figured it'd be a game of chance or something, and yeah I'll get right on that. Probably best get used to your bodies as they are cause I think we're going to be down for a fight weather we wanted it or not."
He partially wanted to scold himself and DD for hyping him up to prove himself, but he knew he needed this too. He reached out across the aether and felt the familiar sign of Shins. He attempted to send a message across but wasn't sure if it'd reach across the dimension as well as wherever they were.
'Shin we need a hand, i'm going to try to summon you, don't freak out we all look weird right now. you probably will too.' With that he focused and tried to pull Shin and the distinct lack of aether near him which he assumed was SG into this realm.
The group stood at the front of what looked like a dancing hall, equipped with beautiful stained floors, deep crimson curtains, a few tables for refreshments at the sides, a hall full of dancing specters whom didn't seem to mind anyone's approach, and a full band of ghostly musicians to the side of the room, most at rest while a harpsichord played a Haunting tune
The vast room had large pillars in the corners as well as two meeting halfway down the length of the hall with archways connecting them for support. The opposite end of the hall from where the group stood had a large set of double doors where guests might enter, and flanking as well as the oval table at the head of the hall were ornate suits of armor fit for someone truly titanic in size. To the side of the main table, which had a well made spread of foods stood a humble looking servant of a man dressed in a double breasted tail coat with a waiting towel over his arm as if awaiting orders. Somehow just by looking at the man you knew his name was Archibald.
"A party of adventurers will arrive here at any moment with axes and swords and stuff, and my dick is hanging in the wind! Easy for you to say in your multi-layered robes!" Caio then removes the collar around his neck and snaps the leash, using it as a belt to help his makeshift stay in place.
The prospect of fighting people with swords and axes scared Caio, so he looked around for some armor and weapon racks, since they were in a medieval castle. As he finds one, he quickly picks a leather armor (which due to his size looks as skimpy as Max's dress) and a greatsword. "Now we are talking!"
As Caio adds more clothing to his frame, Max adjusts to her attire -- despite its terribly impractical design, her clothing somehow doesn't restrict her movements.
Percy realizes that, as the dark wizard in this "duel," he has a measure of control over the world. Taking the role seriously, he expands the chamber into a full ball room full of evil ambience.
He also reaches out to Shin and Steel Guardian who were fortuitously close enough in proximity that he had little problem pulling them into the game world.
The Protégé and the Janus are suddenly there in the grand hall -- Steel Guardian a massive figure in dark plate armor resembling some sort of immense evil knight or fell construct.
Shin arrives cloaked in shadow, wispy strands of darkness wafting off of him. His clothes are black as night, framing his head with a flared collar.
Quincy's voice echoes from above. "The foes are now assembled against the forces of light and goodness. The dark fortress looms before the heroes sworn to defeat the evil that lurks within."
================
The invitation is set and the Disney movie selected, Connie and Femtite settle in to wait for any visitors by the fair folk.
Several hours pass and the pair get drawn into the movies, Femtite watching them for the first time and Connie getting a vicariously new viewing experience.
There's the faintest clearing of a throat but still musical. The Brain and the Outsider look, and see a dainty figure only a few inches tall, shimmering motes floating around her, with impossibly large eyes in its angular face.
"Unseen these days, are the old ways. 'Tis rare to see such offered gifts. I wonder, what causes such a shift? The hated bell is no longer pealing. Is the one again body stealing?"
Max waves as Shin and SG appear. "Hey, guys. So, we're the villains in a real-life D&D game and we have to defeat the heroes or Bad Things will happen. Welcome to the Dark Side," she says, half-jokingly.
Femtite says, “I’ll want to watch all of them, but let’s start with the one with Tinkerbelle in it. By the way, should the actual fey be smaller than us, I will become their equal in stature… there’s actually pixite etiquette around that. Not that all of us have the same range.
“There’s a lot to get into about my extreme size-changing ability. The short of it is that I won’t need a spit-bucket. It’s a matter of matter becoming energy, energy becoming matter… so anything I consume becomes me. And when I shrink, any stored waste… becomes radiation.
“It’s like passing gas, minus the odor.” In a regal voice, she mock-boasts, “The fart of a pixite princess does not stink. Fact,” she punctuates extra-snobbishly.
She gets the fire blanket.
If she sees any unpopped kernels, she touches one with her finger to make it pop. Once she learns the smell of burnt popcorn, she decides one piece is enough. (And she may feel the need to later explain that doesn’t count as a princess fart, but not now. She doesn’t want to talk over the movie and plus she lacks a persuasive argument.) She just wants to hold Connie close and enjoy the show.
Femtite excitedly nudges Connie. “Oh.. pause?”
She shrinks to a few inches herself—the Tinklebrie look is perfect!
“Welcome to our humble home.
Umm… where a film is being shown. Showm? No, wait.
We knew you’d come, or had a feeling,
But didn’t know of body-stealing!
“Would you mind tell us about it?
We’ll hear you out, I doubt we’ll uh doubt it.
“This is Connie, and I’m Femtite.
Please come in—”
—oh, princess farts! What rhymes with—
“—how …was your flight?”
The apparent iron golem looks around, confused. ”What the actual f$+!!?!?” they exclaim anxiously, giving both Max and Caio double takes as they get their bearings.
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Shin also looks around in bafflement. "Thith ith unexpected...eh?" He opens his mouth, poking at two sharp fangs that were causing him to lisp. "...I'm Dracula?!" He said, groaning. "If I have to thtart painting my teeth too..."
He takes the time to pause and as he looks at the assembled team and surroundings. "No Conflux or Fem...tho we thtill have an outthide line..." He notes.
As for the rest of it - predictably for someone who expects the world to work according to physics, this is beyond his mind to comprehend what is actually happening. And the teeth were a big distraction. As was the growing thirst he was feeling...
The sprite gasps musically when Femtite shrinks down to her size. Her impossibly wide eyes open wider and she circles the pixite studying her closely.
"Honored, I am, as you copy my speech. Suspected, I did, my help you'd beseech. My flight was fine; you'd think it was fun. Thus I answer question number one!" She smiles, and Femtite can see the hints of sharp teeth in her mouth.
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Percy breaths a heavy sigh of relief as the others materialize and he cringes a bit at Caio's criticism. "I could probably fashion you something to wear Caio, but I think the Game master Quincy wants us to seem authentic." He looks to the Duke Shincula and The Steel Knight, "Long story short, Knighthall situation is weird and in order to try and get information we're having to play as part of Q's game. We have to defeat, not kill, the party of adventurers that are coming to stop us from ruling over Harrowguard."
He looks around and starts to assess his surroundings attempting to draw in some aether as he did so.
The process looked more like a dark wizard from a movie absorbing the souls of the fallen as several of the nearby dancing specters vanished with a wail. "D'ooohhkay. Uh.. so, I have a plan if everyone is willing to listen to me, I may have terrible luck in these sort of games but I know how to strategize. And since i'm supposed to be the main antagonist here stands to make sense we follow my plan."
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Femtite giggles, baring less-sharp-more-humanny teeth.
“Thanks! It’s fun to speak in verse!
I’m not that good, but you’ve heard worse.”
I assume—rhymes with room—assumption implied, move on!
”Your presence makes me feel so bubbly,
And given fairies are so lovely
I just wonder why the
H-E-double-hockey sticks
Our school had an anti-fey…
B…E…double Pocky sticks.”
nnnnnnnngggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh
Fine
"Yes, aware we became
of new neighbors, unnamed,
Of a ward long forgotten,
and perhaps misbegotten.
So lest it's restored
for your tale we implore
you to guide and to teach,
and an accord we'll reach."
***
"That's actually how we eat too, it just takes a little longer for the matter to become energy. Also our farts do usually stink."
"Oh, shh. C'mon, it's starting!"
Connie, it turns out, talks **a lot** during the movie.
"Ohhh Nana! Such a good dog even if she probably shouldn't be their babysitter."
"Is it really like 10 minutes till Peter shows up?"
"I don't know why Tink's so worried about her hips, she looks great!"
"Okay, but I guess getting them stuck in keyholes is no fun - fair"
"This is what I meant about the thimble. Your kiss was much better."
"I wanted to be Peter Pan so much when I was a kid - though I could never figure out why he wanted Wendy instead of Tink or the mermaids... I got it more later, but I figured out I'm more like Tinkerbell anyways."
"That doesn't mean I'll try to have Conway murdered though."...
Caio tests a few swings with his newfound gratesword, finding himself unexpectedly good with it. He reasons that since they are in a RPG game, if he believes to be a good swordsman, it means he'd be so... otherwise the players would not be dangerous at all, being certainly normal, unskilled people. "So tell us your plan, since they could arrive at any minute... also, Quincy said that the players do not die in real life if their character die here, but the same do not apply to us, so I'm not pulling my punches at all!"
Having an idea, he speaks to Quincy. "Hey Quincy, I have a deal for you. We play our part in your game and we'll fight your heroes. We'll provide the best boss fight your players have ever experienced, but if we beat them, you'll help us track those books and as a bonus we'll not come after you."
Femtite giggles at Tink getting stuck in the keyhole.
When Peter Pan spanks Tinkerbelle, Femtite whispers, “That is… not what you do to a smaller pixite. Consensual spanking would be a generous assumption, but even if—wings are not handles.”
When Conway is mentioned. “Wise choice. If you were a mermaid and I were a bisexual fairy, Conway would be your primary threat.”
The fairy spins in a little dance next to Femtite as the exceptionally large Connie looms over them. The motes of light around it sparkle.
"Questions asked, questions three! Answers have I to give to thee! Accords you speak of, guides and deals! Geas be bound, fates be sealed! Offered gifts of milk and bread; not enough for what's in my head!"
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Percy nods and looks to Max and Caio for a moment, "Ah.. first things first..." He clears his throat and points to Caio, F̸̛̹̐̕í̷̠̽i̷̠̇̍k̸̨̲̪̓̂ ̷̦̹̠͊̓͂D̸̠̲̆͌a̸͈̻̅ͅą̴̯̽͝l̸̬̓͠ who feels himself snap back a bit to his old self.
Looking around the room he notes the terrain, the suits of armor, everything about the room. He points to the archways connecting the massive pillars. "Right, Devi-trix..er DeeDee you've got wings if you can hide up there you can set up for a good place to ambush, hide against the side of the pillar that's on this side of the room and wait for the signal. Shincula." He shakes his head and his voice drops down to be far more gruff much to his own surprise. "Sorry Shin, you're a vampire by the look and sounds of it, so you'll want to keep out of sunlight and try to get in close to their backline, where they'll probably keep their healer and mage. For you two that'll be your top priority. If this follows rules similar to Ghosts and Gorelocks, you should have some kind of hypnotism and hemomancy, also that fancy sword isn't for nothing."
Pointing to the non-sentient racks of armor he beckons the Dark Guardian, "SG, if you can move some of those suits to be near the pillars you can probably act as one until the party falls within our ambush. Also sorry, again you guys were the only ones I could reach from here I will make it up to you later I swear."
Lastly he turns to Caio, "Kalgra-errr damnit. Caio i'm not sure there's a good place for you to hide, so if you want you could probably stand near me, or wait around one of the pillars, something.... sorry werewolves kind of get shafted in the anything but a blunt force implement game. But you can probably deal with their tank assuming your regeneration is up to snuff. If they've got a weapon that neutralizes it I suggest you swap out with SG and try to keep their more mobile members pinned down."
He looks to Archibald, "Archie... you... well," Percy looks to the head table behind him before speaking with a sinister hiss to his voice, "set the table for guests."
He motions for everyone to rally up, "Please use the time we have to get used to your new bodies and powers, any questions? Wait till my signal to strike. I've got just the thing to really make them enjoy the game and if we're lucky we can end this quick And make a good show of it."