⇨ SHABONDAMASHII

[ringleaders]

Who: Everyone!
When: Day 92 - Day 99
Where: Shabondamashii Bathhouse
What: With the Silver Mirror claimed and the animals of Eden relocated, it's time for the carnival to kick back and enjoy an interdimensional bathhouse and the surrounding festival city. Meanwhile, the scattered shards of the Mirror have an unexpected effect.
Warnings: Dark/Light halves acting weird.

THE BIG CLEANSE↴ As the carnival recovers, the Ringmaster has brought it to the gates of a famous interdimensional bathhouse to rest. She won't be joining you for most of it, though she will be checking in frequently and available by radio. She's fixed a large portion of the Silver Mirror after it shattered, but it seems like pieces are missing. She doesn't want to rest until the missing shards are dealt with, and the Mirror itself is locked away safely. ► YOUR OTHER HALF: The shards missing from the Silver Mirror didn't just disappear - after breaking apart in Eden, fragments of the object embedded themselves in the spirits of those not already touched by its powers, and those that had been the most fae-touched. That means, your characters. The effect of this, explained in more detail on the plotting post, is that some characters will be splitting into two versions of themselves: the Light, and the Dark. This doesn't mean good and evil, of course, it's far more complicated than that. Splits can start happening at any time after arriving in Shabon, and initially characters won't know how to rejoin with their twins. Later on, it will become apparent that they need to reconnect via the shard of the Mirror they share... of course, in order to rejoin, you have to have both halves, and not all twins will be as eager to go back to the way things were before. This plot point is optional. ► SPA DAY: When you're not engaging in metaphysical division, you are free to enjoy the many luxuries that Shabon offers. Things will mostly have an east-Asian bend, like what you would see in the movie Spirited Away, but as long as it doesn't affect the setting much, you can honestly have whatever spa-type services available that you want. Food is served both in restaurants and 'buffet' style. There are also well paid sex workers here, if that is your thing, but make sure to tip well. ► FESTIVAL TOWN: The city surrounding Shabondamashii is largely meant to catch the business of interdimensional tourists. There are frequent parades and other events held, and the architecture is very closely packed. It's easy to get lost if you leave the bathhouse, but it's definitely worth it if you like party. You can pick out a few outfits for yourself and some fun nick nacks, but nothing that would normally require mod approval.

Comments

[whattaprick]

The fuck is a samurai? Lambert doesn't know, but he can at least confirm one thing.

"I don't know if I'd call him normal, but he was human," he muses, before he waves a hand vaguely. “Or at least in Yuya’s dreams...”

But his attention is easily distracted, too, and he doesn’t elaborate, caught up in snickering meanly when Childermass filches that earring.

“Shouldn’t steal people’s stuff,” he admonishes. “You want earrings that badly, get your own.”

[kingsroads]

"If it doesn't work, we'll find another treatment for you," Strange happily responds. This is not a problem and they'll figure things out so Peridot can have some fun and get some relaxation in!

Another fun fact: Strange has literally never seen a python before. He's also never seen the Serpent before thanks to that whole mirror nonsense. His snake reference is 'small garden snakes' or 'maybe a viper or two.' So as Patches and Bryndah put the gigantic python on his back, Strange can't help but let out a little surprised yelp.

"That can't be a snake! It feels so big!"

[scientificist]

[Herbert pauses, midstep, and turns around to face Doll as she retreats. He gives her something of a flat, rude look, as if she's too stupid to fully comprehend what's going on.]

You've already stuck your nose into it just by virtue of waking up--you have no idea what that other you is capable of. Especially as your. Friends, your, brother have no idea that the real you is lost out here in the city. As far as they're concerned, that other you is the only one there is. [He starts to walk purposefully back and then almost trips over his geta before catching himself and half-stumbling forward to confront Doll more effectively.] Leaving it alone is just as much an action as a real action would be in this case.

[This is so much more than he wanted to be involved with when he offered to help out here. How annoying.] Are you intending on staying out here or are you coming with me?

[atouts]

At the prodding from Celandine, Childermass cracks an eye open to observe. Lambert... looks terrible. Considering the state he found him in, that isn't a surprise, so he just drones out, "If you're going to vomit, do it floorwards, not mewards, Lambert."

[whattaprick]

Lambert just looks at Childermass blankly, like he's having trouble processing that. Finally, he stammers out:

"You shouldn't be here."

Wherever 'here' is. He obviously didn't get here under his power, but he has no intention of staying, either. The longer he stays with Childermass, the greater the chances are of rejection, and why the hell would he subject himself to that?

He forces himself off the bed and to his feet despite Celandine's soft noise of protest. He gets all of five steps before he is, in fact, doubling over and quietly voids the contents of his stomach, one hand clutching the edge of the room's only desk. Thankfully, he has just enough presence of mind to aim for the wastebasket beside it.

[chronosynthesis]

Syrlya rolls his eyes in response. "I am fairly certain nothing about the rejuvenating properties of wine is going to do anything for actual scarring."

It's hard to tell if the wine is doing anything for his actual stress levels... what it is doing, at about the twenty minute mark, is his skin seems to be taking on a faintest signs of the reddish hue of the wine. Syrlya himself doesn't notice, more occupied with arguing with Strange.

[spaghettimonster]

Papyrus has a weaker grasp of canine noises than he'll admit; enough for him to be sure Greater Dog's a good fluffball, and that that dog was a menace. He makes out that sense of what this trash can's saying, anyway.

"Oh, just a moment!" He hops to the rescue, hauling the lid of the trash off, and looking in to see...

"Doctor Alphys?" He stares down at her silently with a confused smile for a moment, then smiles more brightly. "Oh! I didn't know you were bilingual. You have a bit of an accent!"

[anti_nonsense]

It takes a moment for Rita to tear her gaze away from the water. Just now, she had this nostalgic feeling...

Well, whatever. She turns around and faces Yuya with a small grin. "Can't be that hard. But if you've done it before, then... go ahead. Show me how it's done."

[kingsroads]

Strange also doesn't notice, as he's taking in his relaxation with his eyes closed. Even if they were open, he's positioned himself in a way where he's looking at the ceiling instead of Syrlya.

"I never said it would do anything for scarring in the first place. At least for humans, scarring's an entirely different process than rejuvenating your skin."

[whattaprick]

“Considering some of the other patrons I’ve seen? You wouldn’t even stand out,” Lamber laughs. “You’re right, though. The place is too nice to stay cooped up.”

There’s a flash of wistfulness as he says that, quickly smoothed over. “What else have you tried, besides turning new colors?”

[whattaprick]

“It’s not like they’re lost,” Lambert points out reasonably. “They’re just somewhere they can’t get in the way. I can protect the people I care about because I’m not busy feeling sorry for myself. That’s important to me.”

[hippocarnival]

"... You literally split into two people." He says it slowly, like he's not sure Lambert is picking up on the severity of this. He doesn't care if there's no hollow feeling, it's increasingly obvious some parts of Lambert are just straight up gone.

"Mr. Strange said it might be the mirror, and if it is that means your soul is probably split, too. It's not just getting over how you feel about yourself."

[hippocarnival]

Yuya squints suspiciously. "About what I said in the bath... you don't remember that?"

If it happened to Ignatius... something weird is going on here. It's a little exasperating.

[hippocarnival]

Yuya nods, confirming. "It's really easy. First you..." he trails off, getting and idea which way the wind is blowing before he comes up to Rita's side and points at her kite.

"First, you hold the string in one hand and the kite in the other. You can uncurl it a little, that way some of it's loose."

[anti_nonsense]

Watching Yuya, Rita nods and follows his instructions without issue. This sort of reminds her of when he gave her archery pointers, back at the Manor. Maybe she should give him a little more credit; he seems to know about a lot of things, even if they aren't things Rita normally considers important.

[chronosynthesis]

"Then why are you bringing it up?" He purses his lips into a frown. Are they about to have another argument about this? Syrlya still isn't sorry.

[hippocarnival]

Yuya smiles as he points to the distance. "Now you're going to run against the wind. When you feel it start to catch your kite, you let go and unwind the string all the way so it can go up in the air."

If she needs a visual example, Yuya can get his kite up first. But he's expecting she won't need it.

[kingsroads]

"You can be beat up but not scar. I won't claim to be an expert on skincare," he says, despite the fact that he's already regurgitated so much skincare bullshit straight up gotten from a pamphlet, "but the wine should help with stress, tension, that sort of thing. And don't say you don't have any tension, I'm certain that your fight with that tiger gave you a few gray hairs!"

A pause.

"Metaphorically speaking, that is. What is the Sylvari equivalent of gray hair?"

[chronosynthesis]

"You are a much bigger contribution to my stress than being scratched by a tiger." Really, Strange seems to be the one more personally upset about what happened than Syrlya himself, which he doesn't really understand.

"Anyway, isn't grey hair a sign of aging?" They don't have even a physical equivalent to that, so Syrlya has to consider. "I suppose we may wilt a little, until our mental state improves."

[anti_nonsense]

Another nod. "Okay... here goes."

She runs, holding out the kite until it starts to pull away from her grasp, at which point she lets go and gives it some slack.

It buckles and sways in the air, but manages to stay adrift in the uneven winds. "It's working!" she cries, as if there may have actually been some doubt that she'd succeed on the first try.

[amphibiopathic]

Eruka hops out of his hands, then hesitates. Normally, her instincts would tell her to turn and leave -- especially since she seems to have been spared his recognition -- but there's obviously something amiss, here.

"Hey, um. Are you all right?"

[hippocarnival]

Yuya gives her a reassuring smile. Well... it wouldn't be much of a prize if it was easy, he supposes.

"Okay, here I go!" He angles himself as he tosses his first ring, manages to catch the first one, and he gets excited. The next toss is a little less focused, and it bounces off. As he depletes his rings, he does slightly better over all, getting a little more than half the rings.

It's not enough, but at least they get each get a smaller prize for partial successes.

"It's harder than I thought..."

[npcarnival]

He shrugs his shoulder, not looking at her.

"I think it's something to do with there being two of me. Apparently I'm not the only one," he says. "Nothing about these parts of me are particularly desirable."

[anti_nonsense]

The touch of Strange's hand makes the cowering Rita shudder slightly, turning her head away from him to try and hide the emotion in her face.

"I'm scared," she admits in a low voice, scarcely above a whisper. "I've always been scared of him. First, it was fear of what would happen if I disobeyed him. Then I got away and had to worry about whether he'd come and take me back there. Then he took you, and I thought we were going to lose you forever... but you act like it's no big deal, like I should just get over it. It's like... it's like you don't even care!"

Sorry spa ladies, if the splitting wasn't awkward enough, here she is spilling her guts in front of them.

The other Rita, in the meantime, is on her way out the door. She pauses in the doorway just to shoot a glare back at her counterpart. "You're wasting your breath," she sneers, then departs.

[amphibiopathic]

Well, objectively, his muscles are parts of Ignatius that could be objectively classified as 'desirable,' and the idea of two sets of them walking around out there is a little daunting. However, that won't distract Eruka from the issue at hand.

"What?!" she squawks. "How did that happen?"