(no subject)

[noarchitact]

WHO: Bluebell + Zenith
WHERE: In the middle of the WOODS
WHEN: Day 22 Night and beyond.

[ impromptu camping trip is GO! ]

Comments

[noarchitact]

[ following the m̴͇̬̓̀u̶̦̞͗r̸̛̦̮̈́d̷̻͈̂e̸͕̅͐r̷̨̀̅e̴͉͒̂d̷̳̍ of the dokidoki demon fantasia decided that he's going to spend the rest of his life in the woods letting his guilt eat him alive. ]

[arrowace]

[ true to their word, Mute makes it obvious when they’re approaching, intentionally letting twigs snap underfoot. Do we have a runner? ]

[noarchitact]

[ as soon as he hears the twigs snap he starts looking around. oh shit it's the cops. we have a runner! ]

[eonsadrift]

[ Zenith is there too, staying with Fantasia like he promised. ]

[noarchitact]

[ he's resting against zenith until he hears someone approaching. he hastily grabs his hand and yanks him up with him. CHEESE IT, IT'S THE COPS. ]

[featherduster]

[ Arriving with other Bluebells, making sure to call out as they approach so Fantasia doesn't panic: ]

Fantasiiiiaaaaa~! Yo!

[chasseurdebeaute]

[Approaching from a third direction--different from Mute, and Vash with the others. You're surrounded.]

Dear Fantasia, we couldn't help but notice that you had run off into the woods without any sustenance! I hope you don't mind that we've come to check on you?

[axingnicely]

[ melody is also here ]

[heavyliesthecrown]

[ There was no way they were simply going to leave him alone after everything. And while Crescendo might actually be a little uncharacteristically quiet and pale tonight, he was worried. So worried, that he agreed to come out here where there is no bed. And no tent. No roof at all, in fact. ]

Running is futile. I suggest you surrender yourself to us.

nebulous time.

[noarchitact]

...oh. I almost forgot. [ everything's been SO MUCH LATELY. ] I had asked Red for some locks for both the barn and our rooms and he gave me a quest. It's, ah, [ clears his throat. ] interesting... to say the least.

We need to capture at least four butterflies in a vial, [ he looks aside. ] kiss the vial and say a goal of ours for the future... and then eat the butterflies...

Re: nebulous time.

[arrowace]

[ fun group activity??? ]

I will assist.

Re: nebulous time.

[featherduster]

[axingnicely]

[ man she was okay with this until eating butterflies ]

.... I see. While we're out, I'd also like to gather some flowers...

Re: nebulous time.

[heavyliesthecrown]

What!??

Re: nebulous time.

[chasseurdebeaute]

Oh? Some butterflies can be poisonous, you know. We shall have to practice caution.

EARLIER . . .

[featherduster]

[ Vash disappeared at some point post-ritual (Rubato and Mute will know he went to the lighthouse and then the library, because of course they do), but after returning to Bluebell and finding Fantasia is STILL nowhere to be seen, he's ringing the Shepherd bell. The magical one he never uses. ]

Who wants to go on a little field trip?

Re: EARLIER . . .

[arrowace]

[ interest!! ]

[axingnicely]

I will come along....

Re: EARLIER . . .

[heavyliesthecrown]

Is this to find Fantasia-san? If so, I would like to come. I shall protect everyone with by bow so we can focus on helping him.

Re: EARLIER . . .

[chasseurdebeaute]

We are going to look for our Fantasia, non? I can scan from the sky if you like.

MEMORIES ETC

[arrowace]

Open to flock and nonflockmates too.

[heavyliesthecrown]

[ The quest to regain his memories is as slow as ever. He thought, perhaps this time, he might get something similar to the last. But instead, when he tosses his coin in, it is simply... a concert? Akuki, currently a weed and former member of Rose seems to be there, too.

The concert is Wonderland themed, with each knight dressed as the Mad Hatter. The lyrics seem to match.]

Open!

[arrowace]

[ drops in the coin with no little trepidation and:

The forest is thick and dark. The trees tower overhead and only a few spots of light make it to the forest floor. Mute's small at the best of times, but from the angle of the memory it seems like they're at least a little younger than they are now; certainly younger than the other woman who speaks with a hushed and desperate tone. A huge wolf dog is standing guard nearby, one eye sharp and dark like midnight and the other an unsettling icy blue.

The memory starts with an argument already in progress.

"You can," the young woman says, "you can just leave. You can have more than this, [        ], you deserve more than this."

"I . . . don't."

"Don't what? Don't deserve it? You know that's bullshit. You know he's bullshit."


"Don't . . . deserve. Can't. This is where . . . I make sense." Mute's answer comes even softer, mournful.

"[        ], please . . . " the wolf dog catches something on the wind and lets out a soft growl of warning. The young woman looks stricken, "We- we can talk about this later. Or not talk about it ever. Whatever you want, but we have to go."

Mute says nothing, shifts around on their feet. The young woman holds out her hand.

"Please."

Before Mute can choose, a man becomes suddenly visible, standing between the two with his back to Mute. He's wearing dingy clothes, green and brown gunk is camouflaging his skin, but somehow his dark hair is still shiny and perfect. Fucking elves man.


"Aaah, the drop out. You're getting easier and easier to track these days. Two out of ten performance."

"Fuck off, Rhys," she spits, "[        ]'s coming with me."

"Are they?" He tips his head and looks back at Mute. His face is barely visible against the backlight of the forest canopy, his single eye glinting like a predator's. "Ruining your own potential wasn't enough? Now you want to waste theirs too?"

"It's not about their potential."

"Hear that, [        ]? She doesn't care about your potential. Must be beneath her consideration. Understandable, but mistaken."

"That's not what I-"

"She thinks you'd be better off soft. A townie. You think you'd be better off a townie? Think they would see you're a nice soft girl ready for a nice soft life?"

There's a long pause before Mute replies, "No, Master Warden."

"Think they would see you're a nice person at all?"

With dull certainty, "No, Master Warden."

The young woman says Mute's name again, and even if the sound of it can't be heard, the desperation and sadness is plain on her face.

"So you want to go be a dropout, a failure? Belong nowhere at all?"

". . . no, Master Warden."

"No one belongs with you, you psycho fucking-" furious and ready to spit venom, something changes in the young woman's expression, " . . . wait. You had another kid last time."

The elf turns around again and looks directly at the young woman but still addresses Mute, "So you won't be leaving with the drop out, will you?"

"No," Mute's voice is almost too quiet for them to hear themselves, "No, Master Warden."

"The- the boy," the other woman looks suddenly ill, "where's the other kid, Rhys, where's the little boy?"

"We're leaving."

"Yes, Master Warden."

"Rhys, no, no-! What the fuck happened to the little boy!?"

The elf puts a hand on Mute's shoulder and they both disappear from view.

"No, gods damn it! Gods damn you!" she lunges forward, but it's trivial for the elf to yank Mute back out of her way. "[        ]! Please! Fuck! Rhys what happened to the little boy!?"

Completely undetectable, the elf and Mute retreat.

"RHYS! RHYS YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE!" those are the last words before her screaming just becomes wordless frustration and rage. Mute does not look back.

hmm. Cool. Well anyway time to not make eye contact with anyone and just step back and we can all be normal about this ]

open to everyone!

[axingnicely]

[ cw for sexual harassment and some asshole kicking a cat (cat is ok in the end dw) ]

[ From 5:38 on! All names here are unable to be heard! ]

Re: MEMORIES ETC

[noarchitact]

[ it's kaveh's turn to toss in a coin, and what plays is a layered memory spanning a number of months. it begins by showing him working on building mehrak... hours upon hours upon hours spent working on bringing him to 'life'. when he manages he can't believe it, and memory-ception happens. ]

[ kaveh reflects on his father's death and the depressive spiral his mother fell into. next is his mother remarrying and move away to fontaine. and finally is him in the empty house, and hating how it's become... just a building. it's no longer a home, because a home is where you can find comfort. ]

...ah, I remember that, don't you... Tempo. [ he gives the briefcase a small smile. ]

[ images: ONE, TWO, THREE, & FOUR. ]