⇨ 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

[reflash]

Guiding him back is probably a good idea. Yukio is starting to slide down the wall he's leaning against, his head still fuzzy from the alcohol. He's tired, in a purely physical way that comes from trying to stick to a four-hours-a-night sleep schedule.

"I don't want to."

[exaomori]

“There’s a nice bed waitin’ for ya. It’s much better than sleepin’ out here.” She takes him by the arm, pulling him in the direction of his room. Just one last thing before she could hit pass out in her own bed.

[reflash]

"But he's there," Yukio mutters, a slight complaint. He can deal with his dark half, but he doesn't really want to.

[exaomori]

“Who, Rin?” Who else would it be? And since it’s probably just Rin, Shura won’t hesitate before sliding open the door to his room when they get down the hall.

[reflash]

Rin isn't here. The room would be hard to hide in, with just a futon, a closet, and a tatami mat floor. And someone in the corner, huddled beneath a blanket, tail curled around him and claws digging into the matting beneath him.

The person with Shura doesn't say anything. Why would he?

[exaomori]

Shura is quiet for a moment, processing the scene in front of her. A part of her wonders if this is a trap. But she knows something has happened to Yukio.

“What is this, Yukio?” She isn’t going to wait for him to explain, making her way to the blanket-covered lump and pulling on the blanket.

[reflash]

Yukio grabs at the blanket, claws catching on the fabric as he tries to avoid being exposed. He can't let her see him, he can't let her find out.

Yukio stands in the doorway, head spinning. He kind of feels sick, a twisting in his stomach that has nothing to do with anxiety and everything to do with disgusted hatred.

"It's just me." One of them says. Maybe both of them. It's hard to keep himself separate like this, the proximity blurs the lines between them.

[exaomori]

“Just you,” Shura repeats, sounding remarkably calm. She kneels beside the blanket lump, letting go of the blanket in order to try a find his hands in the mass, wanting to try and see if she can’t loosen the blanket from his grasp. “C’mon, let it go. I know you’re under there.”

[reflash]

Yukio lets go, and Shura pulls the fabric away. He's a mess, yukata rumpled, face streaked with tears, eyes red-rimmed from crying.

"Go away, Shura-san." He mutters, knowing that she won't.

[exaomori]

What a mess. She’s a lot more sober than she was thirty seconds ago, but definitely not sober enough for this.

“Sit up.” She won’t leave room for protest, already pulling at his arm to help him up. Almost as an afterthought, she looks back over her shoulder to the other Yukio. “And you—you sit down and shut the door.”

[reflash]

The dark half untangles himself from the blanket and sits up properly, and the light half closed the door and sits down. He's far too drunk for this, but he can't just avoid the conversation.

[exaomori]

If she was the type to carry a hankie, she’d make the crybaby Yukio wipe off his face. But all she has is her juice, so she just hands the open can to him. After crying like that, he needed to drink something.

“Drink that.” And then, to both of them, “I don’t care which one of you talks, but one of you is gonna spill. What happened?”

[reflash]

The two of them glance at each other, the dark half letting the other one speak first. The light half can handle this, or thinks he can.

"I don't know." That's an easy enough start. "It just happened. But it's fine, Shura-san. It's better this way."

The dark Yukio looks away, fangs worrying at his bottom lip. It's better this way, and he knows it.

[exaomori]

Wait, so he doesn’t know what happened, but he’s okay with it?? Where was the wimp who pointed a gun a Mephisto when he didn’t get his way?

Well, maybe that way the difference. Yukio got his way. “Whaddya mean, this way? You just wake up in two or somethin’?”

[reflash]

".... my brother said something." The dark half admits, not looking at either of them.

[exaomori]

"Rin?" Rin didn't know any curses like this and was too dumb to learn anything like this so quickly, so just how could he cause this-- "Wait, you mean on the radio earlier today?

Because, no lies, Shura had a laugh at that.

[reflash]

"I..." The dark half continues, wilting slightly under the stares from his light half and Shura. "... didn't want to hear that, and something happened."

"I got rid of that part of myself." The light half explains, or half-explains.

[exaomori]

"Ah, well--" So fine, that was probably pretty embarrassing. But still, he was just a kid back then, so it couldn't be that terrible? 'How'd you do it? I mean, you're split, but--" This place wasn't cured, at least, Shura didn't think it was, but they brought that mirror along.

"You weren't exposed to that mirror, were you?'

[reflash]

The two halves look at each other, and consider the possibility.

"It's possible," the light half says eventually, "but it doesn't matter. Part of me is... like that, and I don't want to be."

[exaomori]

"I ain't sayin' that's what happened. I don't even know why it would trigger just 'cause of somethin' like that." Shura crosses her arms, leans back as she considers that matter. Her head hurt, and there wasn't enough aspirin to soothe the headache that was brewing. She straightens and looks back to both halves.

"If it is 'cause of the mirror, then we need to get you back together ASAP."

[reflash]

"No." The light half says, and the dark half doesn't argue. "It's better this way. I'm better this way."

[exaomori]

Of course, both halves are still complete idiots. "Better how?"

[reflash]

"I'm not a crybaby," the light half says, throwing countless conversations back in Shura's face as the dark half curls in on himself.

"And I'm not weak, or scared. That's better, isn't it."

[exaomori]

"You're gonna grow out of bein' a crybaby," Shura replies before she realizes it. Well, too late to take it back now. "An' if it's bein' weak, then this curse is only gonna make you weaker if it is that mirror causin' it."

She almost wants to reach out and touch him as he shrivels up. But Shura doesn't know how to comfort anyone that well, so she keeps to herself.

[reflash]

"It's just faster, Shura-san." The light half corrects. "There's nothing weaker about it. This is the most efficient way to get stronger."

The dark half knows where this is going, where this has to go. There's only one outcome here, and both of him know it.