lostcarnival | Arrivals and Plenty of Confusion [Closed]

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Arrivals and Plenty of Confusion [Closed]

Who: Yuzu, Yuya and Gongenzaka later on
When: Day 159, before the spell goes off
Where: The carnival
What: Yuzu has arrived in the carnival as the new cashier and a promise of answers. Juuuuust that there may be a few complications...
Warnings: Regularly dopey stuff involving these three?

Yuzu felt a little annoyed. There was a tournament going on and she really needed to go back. But, she couldn't do it now. Mostly because it seemed that it was fine hanging back a little while. Especially with what she had experienced before. Oh, well, it was time to be a cashier. Can't be too hard, can it? And it was essentially payment for figuring out what's going on with everything she's witnessed the past few weeks.

Of course, it's not all that simple. Especially since certain people were out and about as Yuzu mindlessly wandered the carnival, seeing what they had so far.

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"Huh? I thought we were!" Or were going to be. Fearing that Yuzu would be gone forever was as bad as it actually happening to him.

He relents his hold a little and leans back to look at Yuzu. There's the sign of tears starting in his eyes, but when he looks at her he just feels relived. He's smiling. Maybe the Ringmaster was steady taking care of the other part of their deal?

"I didn't think I'd see you here, but I'm really glad. You just got here, right?"

"Yeah, I did." Yuzu said, blinking in confusion. Okay, what is he on?

All she can do is sigh, shake her head and reach up to ruffle his hair. "I turn around for one second and you go all super-sappy on me. I'm gonna end up being your babysitter, aren't I?" she asked, an amused look on her face.

"--Huh?!" He's the picture of eloquence. That does get his eyes to clear up as he stares at her in confusion. That's a very different reaction than every reunion they've had since they started crossing dimensions. She's so calm, like they haven't just escaped constant danger again and again.

His face scrunches up in defense and he huffs. "I don't need a babysitter!" In the back of his head he remembers different times, and he stares at Yuzu critically as he tries to put the pieces together as quickly as he can. Surely she couldn't be... "It's been months, but I guess next time I won't be so happy to see you!"

But that was a horrible way to broach the topic.

"Months?!" Okay, Yuzu is very confused. What is wrong with Yuya? He's acting like things have been different. Like they've been gone forever!

"Yuya, what is wrong with you? The last time I saw you, we just watched Sora fall apart in his match, ranting and raving like he's... well... a madman!" she said.

Oh, God.

Yuya's head starts to fall apart too when he hears that. It's like when he found Gongenzaka, but worse, because she doesn't know anything. Not about Academia, Synchro, Leo, who they are... she doesn't know about the past few weeks of chaos before walking into the carnival. He knew different timea were possible, but he wasn't prepared for the extreme as it leaves him breathless.

"But..." He furrows his brow. He doesn't know how to begin to explain this. But an entertainer knows how to think on their feet and they now how to respond to their audience, so Yuya just goes with his instinct and just starts talking.

"Aha... You haven't heard how things work here, have you? Sorry! I haven't seen you in months. Because I've been working here."

He'll let that sink in first.

Okay, she lets it sink in first. And her first reaction is to smack him with her trademark paper fan.

"Yuya Sakaki! We're in the middle of a tournament, something's wrong with one of our friends and you decide to disappear and work here? For months?!" she shouted.

Okay, she's working here, too, but her reasons are important, Yuya!

Let that sink in a little too long! Yuya is promptly smacked, his teeth snapping together in on overdramatic reaction. It's also very successful in getting him to let go.

"But I didn't disappear! Time just... stops outside the carnival or something. I go back exactly when I came from. I didn't--I won't miss the tournament."

He absently rubs his head. "Are you just visiting? I don't think performances even started yet..."

The fan is put away as she shakes her head, twin tails shaking as she did.

"No, I'm actually working here." She stated. "Cashier for one year. Though it's going to be weird if you're right about time here."

Yuya sputters with indignance. That's what she just hit him with a fan for!

"Oh, I'm an acrobat." He stuffs his hands casually back in his pockets, like he didn't just have an emotional outburst on her five minutes ago. "What'd you sign up for?"

Hypocrisy, thy name is Yuzu.

"Cashier." She said. "Feels weird, though. Like it fits me..." She can't help but laugh. "Yeah, right! Me and money...!"

"No, I meant your contract!" He gestures wildly. It's absolutely nosy, what Yuzu considers worth a year tilling at a fairy carnival... but he really wants to know. "What'd you ask for?"

"Oh, that...!" Yuzu said. "Well... I want answers. That boy that looks like you and what went wrong with Sora... I just want to know. I hate being left out like this!"

Yuya has all those answers and then some, but they're caught in his throat. He glances aside briefly, pursing his lips.

"Well, did she tell you anything?" How far does he play dumb? Should he? Yuzu deserves to know, but Yuya doesn't have the words to make it easier.

"No, not yet." Yuzu said, shaking her head again. "She said it would take time to figure everything out. I guess it's a lot more than I thought."

Yuya laughs nervously. "Yeah, I guess so..."

That's probably a huge understatement. But he holds up a smile. He doesn't know how he's even going to begin to explain things. "We've got time to figure it out. That's pretty lucky, or else you'd miss the tournament too!"

He points back the way he came with a grin. "And Gongenzaka's here! He's patrol for the carnival."

"Gongenzaka, too?" Yuzu said, surprised. At this point, she isn't sure if she should be relieved or annoyed at this revelation, but at least the three of them were here.

"Yeah, he--" Yuya pauses, staring blankly in the distance for a moment. Before he finds Gongenzaka there's... something to explain. So he turns back to Yuzu. "You've heard about the way the carnival... changes people, right?"

If she didn't know about the schism in time, though, he's going to assume 'no'.

Yuzu shook her head at that. "Nuh-uh..."

And then, it dawned on her.

"Yuya, what happened?"

"Don't worry!" That is absolutely a precursor to something to worry about. Still, Yuya moves to put his hands on her shoulders with a grin. He hopes his ease (or attempt at least) will help settle her as well.

"Being here a long time makes weird stuff happen to your body. Gongenzaka is still the same Gongenzaka as before, he's just--covered in fur."

That is the least alarming part of what happened to him. "And plants."

"Plants? And fur?!"

Okay, this was way too weird!

"Yuya, I expected something like that out of you! How did Gongenzaka get like that?! I...!" She's not leaving either of you out of her sight!

"I think that's something that he should explain to you," Yuya says with a wink. Partly because the reason is horrific and tragic and he doesn't want to tell Yuzu in Gon's place, when Gon had avoided telling Yuya at first.

"But he's been here for a while. I bet we can find him by the lake." Probably meditating or practicing his spell. There's no way finding him isn't going to be weird, is it? Oh well, they might as well get it over with quickly.

He points forward, his other hand grabbing for Yuzu's wrist to gently tug her along. "It's right behind the trailers!"

"Oh, well... alright. Let's get this over with!" Yuzu uttered. She was not going to like this, even as Yuya tugged her along. Whatever happened to just simple happy greetings, huh? What mess did she get into?

Yuya laughs as he leads the way. "Don't say it like it's a bad thing! It surprised me at first, too, but it's really him!"

What mess indeed. Yuya's bright and bubbly, but it's hard to think of Gongenzaka's changes now without thinking of why he's like that. He glances over his shoulder to Yuzu--of course she's still there, if she's signed for a year the Ringmaster won't let her disappear just anywhere. But he takes the reassurance to steel himself.

He turns back forward, because he doesn't know how to school his features to be as comforting as his voice. "He's been here longer, so he probably misses you too and... sometimes things get dangerous. So we should stay close together." His hand squeezes gently for a moment.

To be fair, a lot of Yuzu's freaking out is out of concern - these are her dear friends and they're doing all of this? Of course she's going to be weirded out and yelling at them. Though that gentle squeeze does cause her to calm down just a tad.

"Alright. I believe you..."

[Gongenzaka is, in fact, meditating, which brings an unfortunate number of New Things to the table as the others approach the lake. Had he been practicing his reiraku spell, he would have known they were coming-perhaps he could have...prepared. Instead however, it is energy focus he trains in, an aura of ice blue gleaming off his body like fire as he meditates in the center of the lake...

Sitting on his four legs like a regal sphinx, while his arms hold the proper and peaceful position above forepaws-his ears still, his eyes, shadowed by a dark mask, closed...And his only movement the flowers and leaves of his body, gently moving in the wind of his own soul.

....He changed, just a little.]

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