IN THE FOREST OF THE LOST

[beathollow]

it's all too perfect.

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CATHERD

[vogelfrei]

[ Once a bit of time has passed, McGillis is going to attempt and round everyone up in the Banquet Hall - the squad who had been fighting were gathered there to begin with, so grabbing everyone else from the rooms they'd been inspecting is hopefully fairly easy. Maybe our new companions the fairy lights are going to come along as well...?

After McGillis has been quite reserved and only hanging back during Argenti's palace, he's back in Mission Leader mode this time. Everyone who still has issues with him for the whole friend murder thing is going to need to suck it up?? ]

I assume everyone's already on the same page, but just to recap: We're in Mafuyu's palace, and the topic matter we're dealing with is the stifling expectations put on her by her mother, to the exclusion of all individuality. Her mother takes the role of the Queen in this realm, with Mafuyu as the Princess.

I believe we've all seen a number of memories from Mafuyu. I don't think it's necessary to recount every detail of her private life for all to hear, but suffice it to say that her mother has taken great measures to cut her off from all support systems.

In this fairytale version of events, we're cast in the role of visitors to the realm, and we're under scrutiny by the Queen before she'll let us meet the Princess. Though... [ with a look at the traces of fight all around ] ... at this point, the ship may have sailed on a quiet infiltration. But maybe that is just as well - in terms of the story, we're the villains who are trying to steal the Princess after all.

[ He gives a small smile at that. ]

Has anybody found something else that's relevant?

[beathollow]

As a note, everybody who was involved with the fight is dirty. But they also have full heals, and the full cleanse music box...

Alongside a new yellow light who is sticking to Yoon, not unlike a child hiding behind a big sibling.

[strawsandals]

[ He's not going to pay any mind to the dirt, but he will make note of the yellow light. ]

...Ah, are you okay?

[beathollow]

I'm scared. I... new people are scary. This castle is scary. The Queen is scary. I- she hurt Mafuyu. Even before all this...

I miss her.

[beautifulknight]

[ Argenti turns towards McGillis with a curious expression as he addresses the group at large, listening closely as he details everything right then and there.

Which makes it simple enough in some respects because yes, he also agrees there's no need to repeat the details seen by her private life - not that it is necessarily going to be obscured, but... ]

...I do not believe that I have.

[ He's also curious about the fight but he is certain that will be uh elaborated on or something. ]

Though...it appears that she subconsciously knows that we are here to support and care deeply for her - I heard such dear sentiments from her heart reach out to me to communicate as such, from a green light. That she wants our assistance. Naturally, I think that as long as we are clear in communicating that and we are here to help her, we shall find ourselves secure to rescuing her, so to speak.

[vogelfrei]

That reassurance is good to have, given the memory we saw earlier.

[ Due to Personal Hang-ups, McGillis was inclined to take Mafuyu's statement of not wanting to be saved somewhat at face value. He doesn't want to be saved either. ]

[goei]

[Too bad you're going to get saved by us one way or another, idiot.]

[supherb]

[Arven’s quiet through McGillis’s recount of events, staring down at his dirtied clothes that he’d tried hard to keep pristine. It’s not like it matters, though. After everything that he witnessed in the gallery, he knows it’s only a matter of time until everyone here is stained with grime.

He’s tired of being nice for this monster of a woman.]

Has anyone else run into lights that talk to them…?

[Like the one by Yoon over there.]

[vogelfrei]

Yes. The blue one introduced himself as KAITO, a manifestation of Mafuyu's anger.

[ So McGillis thinks it tracks that the light came to talk to him specifically. ]

It stands to reason the others are likewise avatars of her suppressed emotions.

[emptyself]

[ soujuurou was, in fact, not totally on the same page as everyone else. having mcgillis spell it out for him helps a ton, and he nods as the man continues to explain.

he still doesn't understand what's so wrong with trying to help mafuyu and how that makes him or the others villains, but he simply chalks it up to a difference in perspective. what some people see as good, others may see as bad. it's just the way of life. ]

Um...

[ he really doesn't know whether to speak up or not, but... ]

My light's name is Meiko. I think they're like a guardian spirit.

[townmusician]

[Haruka is here, covered in dirt and ash! Why? Don't worry about it.]

Pink Light-chan told me that we need to find the theater, but it's always moving because the "Queen" keeps moving it.

[No comment on being assigned the villain, because, like. Yeah. That's obvious.]

Because she sucks.

[beathollow]

She does!

[privatedomicile]

Yeah, the bitch kicks down any friends she thinks'll be a bad influence on her too. I found a girl in the trash.

[Jesse gestures to the schoolgirl doll on his shoulder.]

If she says we're the bad guys, might as well go all in. We could get under a tablecloth and be a big dragon. You know, like Chinese New Year.

[goei]

... Ain't that just a doll?

[emptyself]

But those are usually guardian spirits.

[goei]

[Izou wandered off to check out the other rooms after the fight because he's restless, but he's back now, and for anyone not present for the fight, he's somehow now completely topless?, with the ripped remnants of his kimono hanging out over the edges of his hakama.]

The "queen's" obviously watchin' us somehow. Anytime someone does something she wouldn't like, like swearin' or actin' out, we get a mark on us.

T'me that means if we give her enough reason to, we could goad her ta come out and deal with us personally.

[finalmix]

... Are you volunteering?

[emptyself]

You're not saying that you want to wreck this whole place to make her mad at us, are you? We wouldn't be dirty if you hadn't ripped open the curtain.

[ WHYYY ARE WEEEE FIGHTINNGGGG ]

[townmusician]

[???????]

What happened to you?

[vogelfrei]

[ ... where is your shirt-- well no, actually he can see where your shirt is. Alright then. ]

Or she'll keep endlessly sending less powerful entities after us, to wear us down. Since this is Mafuyu's mind, there is no telling when she'd run out of grunts. If she'd run out of grunts.

[ Material constraints mean nothing here. ]

[beautifulknight]

[ ...There's a little frown on his face here because Izou what kind of trouble did you manage to get into- ]

I see you managed to get into a tussle of some sort?

[ But also, maybe it has its benefits. Who knows. Though, he will pause and add: ]

...Yes, I suppose that might be the case. It could be a way to provoke the Queen, considering she seems so concerned with ruling with an iron fist.

Either way, I doubt she can obscure her presence for long.

[fullmoonmutt]

[ ... ]

What the fuck?

[ That's another smudge. Oh well. He's come back from... wherever he's been. Up in the bedroom, where he helped haul all of Mafuyu's thrown-away things back to. Now he's back, rejoining the others, and...?! Izou?! ]

Put a shirt on!

[ HE DOESN'T NEED TO SEE ALL THOSE MUSCLES, HOLY SHIT? ]

[ledbythewind]

I encountered a maid who kept saying that she didn't understand how certain items kept getting in when the Queen didn't allow them.

[...]

The items in question were cookies, tea and hot chocolate, and some sandwiches that looked like the ones Arven makes.

[goei]

Do ya think that means there's other people here tryin' ta help Mafuyu or are they just gettin' in with palace magic?

[supherb]

[Grumbling:]

I don’t need her approval of my cooking anyway.