TEST DRIVE MEME ⚔️️ 7

[avalonmods]

✨ Greet new players on the OOC intro while apps are processed HERE! ✨

{ QUICK NAV } Premise ⚔️️ Rules ⚔️️ FAQ ⚔️️ Taken ⚔️️ Reserves ⚔️️ Apply ⚔️️ Locations ⚔️️ Bestiary ⚔️️ Top-Levels Only ⚔️️ A ⦿ Soaking in Your Arrival KERPLUNK, SPLASH! Regardless of what you were in the middle of, you and your familiar have been magically pulled into the world of Avalon just above the Bay's waters. After a brief plunge into the Bay, the rush of water filling your ears and soaking up into every creak and crevice of your body, you may need to cough to clear your airways when you rise above the surface. It's still chilly, but not enough that you can't manage on your own. The Lady of the Lake is swimming around under the water, helping to rescue any wayward travelers who look like they're struggling in the water. This month's helpers are giant pillow jellies, a species of jellyfish that is capable of ballooning itself at the surface to create bouncy pads for characters to hop across to the shore, should they choose or not be able to swim. They come in a variety of bioluminescent colors, but do not seem to be very talkative even to animal magic users. Those who try may find themselves being ignored, even if they hear the jellies talking amongst themselves about this and that. If anyone tries to ask the Lady of the Lake for directions, she will direct you to Archimedes at the Rent-a-Ride. The shores themselves are littered with new arrivals complaining their way up a staircase carved into the walls of the White Cliffs. There is no railing, so be careful, but if you do fall, be prepared for a mysterious sand hand to reach out of the side of the cliffs to catch you. The hand will pat you atop the head twice before retreating back into the wall. This is the Cliff Beast; despite the name, he is quite friendly. *Reminder: Your character's familiar may or may not be with your character in their initial plunge. If the familiar isn't partial to water, it may meet your character on the beach or sit atop their head while they swim. Or if they are, they might splash about and swim alongside your character. Familiars have different personalities and body specs and we leave those up to the players. B ⦿ The Caravan to Camelot Once everyone is wrangled up to the top of the White Cliffs, the handsome owner of the Rent-a-Ride, Archimedes, will distribute smart phones and a pair of special ear buds (the supplier was out of the regular ones) and tell them to "Check the Shit Box." The "Shit Box" refers to wardrobe more formally known as the Wardrobe of Finding, a hammerspace-like wardrobe that opens to each person's items and pets when the person touches the handle. It was recently enchanted by Merlin to prevent people from having to fish their waterlogged possessions and pets out of the water with them. From there, Archimedes directs everyone to settle in groups into modernized carriages pulled by horses and gives them a basic explanation of why and how they've been brought to Avalon: The rest of the universe is frozen in time and your character has been brought here by a familiar that was able to bond with them. They'll have to learn magic to help save their own world from destruction, but first they've got to get them to Camelot. It is here that you have the first opportunity to decide who they will be in their new home. You'll have about an hour to wander around here, meet and greet, and pet the horses before it's time to go. These carriages use fae technology that combats weight, so your character will be able to get in regardless of whether they're light as a feather or weigh two tons. The carts have air conditioning when it's hot, heating when it's cold, and a mystical shield to protect from bugs. There is also a mini-bar that pops out of the console with nip bottles. Characters can use their smartphones to connect to Camelot's internet service, avalononline (AOL), to chat with other characters, watch dumb videos, learn about the world, contact Camelot Support (they'll answer any questions they can for you, from how to use a smart phone to where to find quests and resources to learn more about your magic). Be careful if you decide to use your phones while in the caravan-- if you don't use those earbuds and start forcing everyone to listen to your nonsense, Archimedes may make you walk. C ⦿ The Red Spring The journey from the White Cliffs to the City of Camelot is a long one, and the first evening you arrive you'll end up spending at the Red Spring, a booming resort town. Because of the volume of new arrivals and vacationers, inn rooms are assigned two-to-a-room. The rooms have two twin beds, a bathroom, a mini-fridge and microwave, and a TV equipped with a couple of entertaining video games and a few free movies. If you don't want to relax in the room, try taking a dip in the spring for another chance to meet your fellow travelers. The waters have restorative properties that help horses and travelers recover quickly when drunk. It is known to relieve stress, improve energy levels, and mildly accelerate healing. It may be a little chilly when you get out though, so make sure you don't slip rushing back indoors when you get out! The springs are also home to a large training grounds just outside town limits, where there are teachers who will teach basic magic safety and help you discover what kind of magic you have together with other new arrivals. Try target practice, obstacle courses, meditation circles, and other ways to try to figure out just what you can do... if you didn't already have an accidental discovery on the ride there. After the new arrivals come in, they'll find that this month they came in on the middle of a rather tumultuous time... people are arguing and debating about a future decision to be made. King Arthur recently tried to negotiate with Celliwig's people to open the doors to Camelot, but they refused, and the people have been left with a decision: 1. attempt long-distance, slow wooing of Queen Elphame via the Elphame Traders of the next couple of months, 2. attempt to prove a balanced and deeper understanding of the need for both pure and impure hearts by suggesting an acceptance of trials from Celliwig, or 3. band together under Camelot's flag to invade Celliwig. Celliwig is a place of communication between Elphame and Camelot that bypasses the need for weeks of dangerous, often fatal travel, so the choice is very important in regards to how Camelot both presents itself to the fae people in the future. To that end, people with strong beliefs about particular choices have arranged gatherings to draw people in to hear their perspectives on what the choice should be. A ⦿ Honey Over Vinegar A wide variety of people have sided with this group, including the Elphame Traders, as cutting Celliwig off from them would mean a much harder journey each month to the city of Camelot. (Though commerce always does find a way.) This group is hosting a Tree-Picking Tournament! Of course, the trees to be picked are out in the farmlands, and members of the lobbying group will be giving people free one-use Farm Totems to get to the tournament. The trees in this grove are a little different than normal trees, however. For one, they don't bear fruit. This is Camelot's cookie orchard, composed of special fairy tree hybrids that grow a variety of sweet treats on their branches instead of fruits. There are your usual chocolate chip and peanut butter cookies, but also little puff-like wedding cookies on bushes or checkboard cookies blossoming out of stems instead of flowers. There are even some trees that have clusters of miniature French macarons! The best part, at the end when you turn in your cookies for the count and get your participation prize (and bonus pamphlet about how slow and steady wins the race), you can totally keep and eat them, so be careful not to drop them! How you get them down from the tree is up to you, of course. Try some magic, or maybe just some regular old tree-shaking will do the trick.. just be careful you don't accidentally knock down any wasp nests. Those stings will hurt bad! B ⦿ A Balanced Approach The party of people who want to try to woo Celliwig over to smooth things over see this little political gathering with cookie-based bribery and quickly fashion their own event to make sure the fanfare isn't all for just the one idea. To gather people in to hear their side of the story, this group has decided to host a bug catching contest! Head out into those flower fields between Camelot and the Red Springs that are now thriving thanks to April's plentiful rains. Whether you use a net or figure out how to use your magic to get the bugs, it's how many you catch, not what kinds you catch that count-- so make it fast and make it plentiful! And at the end of the day, what you choose to do with your captured bugs is up to you. Crush them or free them, keep them or eat them, whatever it is you want to do... ultimately, all moral choices are valid, right? So let's go along with what Celliwig wants! Don't forget that May is the season of the frog, however, and you'll be in competition with a variety of sentient and wise members of the Frog Tribe, a group of bipedal frogs who live in the southernmost part of the lake and come up to the flowerfields to stick their tongues out for some delicious bug treats. They have no problem sticking their tongues right into your captured bug nest, hopping on heads to steal your catches, and do all kinds of crazy interferences like snipping belts and tonguing ankles to trip people. You may want someone to watch your back for this event, lest you get done in by a hopper. C ⦿ A Show of Strength The more war-hungry citizens of Camelot seek to go to war. This whole issue will be over if Celliwig itself isn't the one in charge of communication and it's just made directly between Elphame and Camelot, rather than having a mediator who refuses to mediate. They believe that a show of strength is the only way to solve this problem, and as such, they'll be demonstrating that the greatest rewards come from strength by organizing an expedition to a cave at the base of the Ash Mountains. Taking a path squarely between the Dusklight Woods and the edge of the Lands of Rot to the base of the Ash Mountains, this expedition will lead into a cave known as the Giant Cave. It's a pretty on-the-nose name, since it really is a big cave. One of the cool things about this cave is that it's filled with geodes. Those who have enough strength can use provided pickaxes and drills to dig up their own crystals and gold, both great for jewelry and enchanting. In particular, there is a large amount of: • Rose quartz: dark mages can make their love spells much more powerful and healers can use this to enhance spells that soothe anxieties and self-doubt • Amethyst: siphoners increase the potency of counter-curses and light mages will find this stone makes their hard light shields stronger than ever • Agate: strengthen cognitive abilities like post-cognition for a clearer picture of what happened by enhancing perception, and death mages will find they're able to extend their possession times by about 30 minutes by using an agate to stablize their aura • Moonstones: will increase navigation as a traveler's protection for kinetic users-- no longer will you risk tripping over a rock while going at enhanced speeds, or can be traded to fairies to potentially bring down a steep price to something more reasonable • Black tourmaline: a crystal that shields from opposition/negativity-- for technomancers and elementalists, this means that technology is more likely to side with them over another technomancer, or elementalists will find that when using opposing elements, theirs will come out stronger-- like water vs fire, electric vs rock, etc. • Hematite: can soothe blood, leaving it a good tool to enhance animal and blood magic-- animals may trust you more readily by having a calming effect on them, and blood mages may find that they heal more readily after using their abilities • Boji stone: alchemists will find that this is a good stabilizer for for particularly volatile potion combinations, and the properties of this stone leaves green mages to sense new types of plants they haven't yet encountered in passing, even if they're not looking at them It's not particularly a contest in this case-- you can keep and use what you want, and this show of strength has given you more power than ever, so why not consider the same concept for how to deal with our unneighborly neighbors in Celliwig? It may be sweaty business, but surely hitting some rocks will show you the value of strength! With the surprisingly tame day in the Giant Cave, one would think that the Ash Mountains were something of a safe place. No one really bothered the travelers, but that's because no one had been home at the time. as it turns out, the Giant Cave is home to a giant... douchebag of a minotaur. Not a giant, despite the name. His name is Simon and he doesn't like to share, and now that a bunch of people have gone and taken his rocks (he didn't even know there were crystals inside, nor does he do anything with them). Now he has to take his revenge, regardless of not knowing who actually took the crystals that were never really his to begin with, they just happened to be in rocks near where he sleeps. A ⦿ A Stone's Throw from Revenge The minotaur is a very instinctive creature, and his instincts say that the people of Camelot, the nearest settlement, are the ones who need to be punished for this. He uses his superhuman strength to drag huge rocks and boulders all the way to the north-east edge of Camelot, seemingly for no reason, until he's got practically a wall built. At which point he starts picking them up, spinning, and then vaulting the rocks into Camelot's buildings. You may find yourself inside of one of those buildings and scrambling to check if everyone and yourself is okay, or perhaps you're rushing out to stop the minotaur from throwing another. Either way, it's a sudden attack and you're going to have to act fast. Trying to attack the minotaur will be difficult, since it has superhman strength and durability, sharp horns atop its head, and can smell you coming from a mile away. Get creative, and stop the minotaur before it's too late! B ⦿ There's Safety in Numbers Once the minotaur's attacks stop, it flees to recover its wounds, promising it will come back to destroy Camelot once and for all. It's a time for reprieve and to help clean up the damage. Use your magic to help clean up broken buildings and structures, or heal and help others who were injured in the sudden, mostly unprovoked attack. Many of the uninjured citizens will be going around town and providing drinks, towels, and cups of noodles to those who are helping out. Because of the impending threat of the minotaur's return, it's recommended that otherworlder's use the (Recipe) Buddy System spell. The way they explain it, it's a spell designed to alert your buddy if you're in danger and lasts about an hour. The way it actually works is you must be touching your buddy in any way at all times for the next hour. Unfortunately, it seems like the volunteers sharing the recipe may have missed that it was created in a kindergarten class, not for adults. C ⦿ Gross Thankfully, the Buddy System wears off before the Minotaur is back for round two. When the Minotaur returns, the castle has since gathered forces to the edge of town to defend it from another attack. It's unclear where the Minotaur went to get healed, but whoever he went to apparently had some advice, however, and the instinctive minotaur gave into a different instinct for part two of his revenge. Rather than go right back to his pile of rocks, he instead travels the day to get to the southernmost part of Camelot and barrels into town unopposed, as most of the troupes are where they had thought he would come from again. After all, minotaurs are not known to be big thinkers. Instead of violently destroying this time, however, the minotaur instead heads straight to lowertown's well-- and takes a pee in it. It turns out, not only does he have a giant-- ahem, but he is a giant dick as well. Now the entire lowertown has to be evacuated due to contaminated water up to other areas of Camelot. Many people who live there are relocated to live in extra castle rooms. After all, Minotaur Urine is known to be incredibly potent and stinky. Mages who are able to handle the smell are asked to come help perform a ritual of water purification for the lowertown's water system. This ritual involves multiple groups of people performing synchronic magic, a magic type that requires you to be in perfect sync with your partner. Draw a special ritual circle with four candles at equidistant points. Chant a spell in sync with your partner, and blow a special powder made of ground jasper, charcoal, and rosemary into the center of the circle. It will be drawn into the candles' flames and with enough people doing this, all impurities will be removed from the lowertown's water and dissipate into the atmosphere. KEY POINTS New arrivals drop into the lake and have to climb up a cliff to the Rent a Ride, where they are given their device and some headphones and can retrieve their personal materials. They travel to Camelot, which is a multiple day journey, so they stop at the Red Springs along the way and stay at an inn there. There is a vote pending for Camelot and each side of the issue is trying to engage otherworlders to their side of the vote. The slow/steady approach is hosting a cookie harvesting tournament from a grove of cookie trees, the middleground group is hosting a bug-catching contest, and the group that wants war is hosting a mining expedition. The mining expedition aggros an asshole of a minotaur, who throws rocks at Camelot. Driven away, the townspeople try to help by distributing a spell called "Buddy System" which binds two people together, not realizing it was intended for kindergarteners. (Oops.) The minotaur returns and pees in the lowertown's water, so a ritual of water purification must be performed because it's gross and stinky. The minotaur is still at large. **** The above key points are a new feature we're going to start including on TDMs and Events. Since it's new, the format is still fluid, so please let us know if you have any feedback for this section here. It should just include brief summaries of each prompt to make parsing information easier and more accessible. The original prompts should still be read and referred to for complete information and details. **** MOD NOTES: • All test drive prompts are open to anyone in the game at any time to create your own logs with, but this post should have top-levels by potential new characters only. Current characters may reply to any threads, but should not top-level comment on this post. • If your application is accepted, you may accept TDM threads as game canon as long as both players consent. Characters may begin threading as soon as their journal is accepted to the communities. • A poll will go up a little later this week regarding the mentioned voting, which should be answered ICly by each character you play. The poll will remain open through the 15th so that newly accepted characters may also vote if they choose to. •If nothing here tickles your fancy, try one of this month's Quests for your TDM prompt. • The first "Arrival" prompts are present on every TDM, but contain seasonal tweaks for flavor. All other prompts will change monthly. • Questions about this TDM's content? Comment here! If you have a question about the game at-large, please head over to the FAQ.

Comments

Kotarou Tennouji | Rewrite | Light/Blood

[scriptwriter]

A - The Caravan to Camelot

[It felt like Kotarou was always going to through this endless cycle of gaining happiness in his pockets and losing it all again. Solitude and miracles felt like something that went hand-in-hand throughout his life. He could feel the invisible walls built up around him again being in a world where he didn't really have anything. Everyone else on this carriage probably had led an amazing life and had some interesting stories to talk about... It might've been easier to stay quiet, but he felt that silence was growing suffocating.

The question is how should he approach this? At this point, Kotarou has embraced his extroverted 'fakeness' and introverted 'realness' as two sides of the same coin. It wasn't like he was in high school anymore... He was never a proper student to begin with, anyway. But he still wanted to become a 'somebody'. Even as an adult, Kotarou felt that he wouldn't stop being childish. His heart would always remain youthful in a sense. If you're sitting next to him, Kotarou will calmly start talking to you like a shady business dealer.]

Gotta admit that this is all a lot to take in, huh? My familiar here is a little haughty and pokes around a lot, but I guarantee that it's a rare catch. In fact, it's in the top percentage of familiars. So why don't do we a little trading and I'll take that one off of your shoulders. It's no different from how kids play Sukumon, yeah?

[In the middle of his sales pitch, Kotarou was looking calm, confident and composed as the Leaf Bird on his shoulder was poking him on the head. He was pretending like nothing was wrong and trying to have a smooth easy-going conversation... But eventually, he completely breaks his demeanor and snaps.]



--OWOWOW! I CAN'T TAKE THIS! FOR THE LOVE OF GOD! JUST HELP ME GET RID OF THIS THING!!

B - Red Spring (Training Grounds)

[Whenever he was a superhuman, Kotarou always had to be careful about how he approached people. Turning door knobs, shaking hands, going on a jog... Stuff like that could be a little nerve wracking for him because if he slipped up, then he could seriously hurt someone. He always made it a rule to not use his strengthening abilities unless he absolutely had to. But he didn't feel that empowering link in his heart anymore... Kotarou had to assume that he wouldn't be able to rewrite himself like usual. It wasn't a big loss as he felt that he could still do incredible things. Hopefully, anyway. Learning magic felt like he was starting up a new RPG game! So he couldn't help and feel more than a little excitement... Once he saw someone who was training all by themselves, Kotarou will walk up to them with an easygoing smile.]

Uh, excuse me! Sorry to interrupt you! [For once, Kotarou decides not to approach this lightly and does a little polite bow to you.] I still don't have a good grasp of my magic here. Care for a spar to help me get the hang of things? Or you could just throw a spell at me and I'll adapt to it!

[In most situations, Kotarou felt that he was good at adapting his powers on the fly. As much as he didn't like to admit it, he usually flourished better in dangerous pinches anyway. Either way, he sounds quite eager! If he wanted to become a somebody, then he had to become stronger quickly. That's what it meant to change yourself.]


C - Show of Strength

[Whenever it came to war and politics, he had a lot of conflicting feelings about that. It reminded him of the constant fighting between Guardian and Gaia. No matter what world he was in, it looked like the ugly side of human nature would always show itself. The one thing that he wanted to prioritize above anything else was the things that were precious to him. But those 'precious things' weren't here in this world, though. Starting from scratch was going to be tough... He decides to lend a hand to assist with Ash Mountains expedition.

Why? Well, he needed a distraction from his own depressing thoughts. He might've lost his strengthening abilities, but he still had the muscle that he built up from being in Guardian in the past. A more matured body really did help out in cases like this. Since he hated awkward silences, Kotarou couldn't help and grin with a hint of mischievousness as he dug away at the stonewall.]

♪ I'veeeeee beeeeen working on the railroooooood! Allllll the liiiiive long daaaaaay! ♪ [A beat.] Sing along if you know the lyrics! Trust me, it's gonna help our work move faster.

[Keep in mind that Kotarou is a terrible singer. He thinks that he sounds beautiful, though.]


D - There's Safety in Numbers

[If this were an RPG game, Kotarou felt that the minotaur would've been the big old fashioned boss fight. It even had the cliche one liners that he couldn't help and scoff at. Instead of fighting it directly, it was better to play a supporting role in his mind. That's why he decided to focus more on helping out the injured and handing out food. Despite the minotaur leaving, there was some unspoken tension in the air regarding its return. In this situation, it was best to follow the herd and adapt. Touching your partner for an hour was going to be awkward... It'd be best to keep things chaste with a little hand holding.

Truthfully, he wasn't great with physical intimacy without making the atmosphere awkward... But this is why he fancied himself as a skilled Conversationalist. You couldn't make friends without breaking down a few walls first. So that's why he's going to go for a direct approach and walk up to someone and offer his hand.]

Hey there. Wanna take a quick walk around town together? I'm pretty new around here and need a guide, anyway... So why do we make ourselves a tag team?

C

[konpeito_aji]

If I sing something else, do you promise to shut up?

[He's not even sorry! His poor nearly broken ears! And if there's anything else in this mountain (like dragons) if the mining didn't wake them, that singing definitely will!]

[scriptwriter]

[Oh, this guy was going to be fun. Kotarou flashes him a shit-eating grin as he rests a hand up against the wall all smug-like. It's been a while since he's encountered a fellow like this... It almost reminded him of Yoshino.]

Weeeeell... That depends on how good it is, big guy! If you can match my heavenly pipes, then I'll give you the title of "Greatest Singer in Avalon".

[When was that even a title?!]

[konpeito_aji]

[Have an even cockier smirk right back!]

The Demon King of the Sixth Heaven, is the best singer on Avalon.

[He's not just blowing hot air -- err well he is, but he CAN sing pretty damn well. And had quite the reputation apparently in more than just one world for his singing and dancing... which believe him, is the last thing he ever expected to be remembered for! He's also not shy about it (FOR NOW!!! If it draws enough attention he'll want to die!) either, just unabashedly throwing all his emotions into it.]

[scriptwriter]

[And he even sounded rather extra like Yoshino. But "The Demon King of the Sixth Heaven"? Where has he heard that name before? Back whenever he went to school, he remember hearing a lot about this fellow in history class... Hold on a minute.

This guy couldn't be pretending to be Oda Nobunaga, couldn't he? There was being chunni and there was also this. Kotarou is standing there in a mix of pure awe and heavy interest too. Nobunaga's singing is also getting some attention from other diggers. Kotarou stays silent for now instead of throwing in a snarky comment.

The diggers move over to surround both Nobunaga and Kotarou in a circle as they listen to him finishing the song. Once he was finished, they start clapping and whistling! "Ohhhh... He has the voice of an angel!" and "Ahh... I feel my bones becoming rejuvenated already!" and "MUCH better than that devilish singing from earlier!"]

1/2

[konpeito_aji]

[Oh, kill him now...]

Ah no!

[BLUSHING AND THEN JUST GRRRRR---]

2/2

[konpeito_aji]

Demon King! Demon King! I said I'm the Demon King!

[GRRR! He just points to Yoshino! QUICK DISTRACT!] The echoes from the cavern are just playing tricks on your ears!

[Screw this, how fast can he run deeper into the cavern and/or cause a cave-in?!]

[QUICKLY PICKAXING THE SHIT OUT OF STUFF!!!]

[Don't look at him!]

[Listen, he's used to stares, but not like that!]

C

[song_princess]

I... I apologize my lord... I do not know the name of that song.

[And dear Ashura! Someone please save her ears from this... This noise!]

[scriptwriter]

[WHY IS EVERYONE HATING HIS BEAUTIFUL VOICE?!]

Wahaha! It's called "I've Been Working on the Railroad"! That's an American folk song classic.

B - Red Spring (Training Grounds)

[lunarchain]

Sure, do you know the magic you are capable of doing?

[ Mona responds without missing a beat, she had a book in her hand. Writing about things regularly. She learned that around the first time of the month people would begin to collect in, and is surprise at this moment that the case is true thusly. ]

[scriptwriter]

I'll demonstrate since I don't really have the full grasp of it yet. Just don't laugh, okay?

[Kotarou holds up both of his hands and shuts his eyes before he starts focusing. There was going to be a light shining in his palms just like the aurora borealis. It looked like a star was going to be born, but something goes wrong. What pops out from his palms is a hardened stone that rolls on the ground. It was a stone with pointed edges that looked like a star... But it wasn't the projection that he was shooting for.]

I'm not very good at the projection part, but it looks like I've got the hardening down.

[lunarchain]

!!

A Light Mage! [ Mona jumps up and quickly grabs his hand, her eyes alight with excitement. ]

From what I learned its a rare type of Magic trait, I myself have it as well! Though I can only make star lights, and lights or lanterns myself. I've been thinking about selling light craft for a while now. Please I can help you learn what I can, however I have read that Light Magic can create shields. I myself have been unable to.

[scriptwriter]

Huh? Uh, well--

[Kotarou is caught off guard by the sudden hand grab. And she was talking rather quickly! He thought that he couldn't make stars properly, yet he could see them so well in Mona's eyes that he was sure that they were sparkling right now. He blinks twice before thinking: "Wow... She's kinda cute." Was she here for a while thinking that she was the only one with this magic?]

Light Magic is rare, huh? I guess that makes us two peas in a pod. [A beat.] S-Since you're having trouble with the hardening part, I can do my best to help you out too. Though I'm not sure if I'll be a very good teacher, uh...

[Damn it... First impressions meant everything! And he was just fumbling through his words like a loser! Should he got for a witty joke? No, that would've been lame right now. That's whenever the question finally hits him!]

What's your name, anyway?

a

[bleedformeplz]

[Himiko minded her own business during the ride when Kotarou spoke up. The teenager smiled giving him her full attention. The only thing Kotarou could see from Himiko's familiar were it's small sharp claw, it was similar to a bird or reptile, poking out from her side, it was shy. Himiko fell quiet and listened to Kotarou's speech, glanced up to his bird, seemed interested from her facial expression. Himiko's good at masking her facial appearance, and let the guy talk, see what else he had to say, and he sounded kind of funny.

Then her laughter erupted when the bird pecked the poor guy repeatedly. What a cute character!]

Sorry, think you're stuck with that one for life! It's cute, but--[Finally, her creepy familiar emerged from hiding, crept from Himiko's side, resting its chin and claws on her lap, eyes locked to the bird familiar like a lion hiding in the grass.]

I don't think you can handle mines.

[scriptwriter]

HOLY CRAP!

[It was Himiko's familiar that makes Kotarou lets out a big girly scream as he falls back onto the floor. Kotarou had been seeing and fighting UMAs for a while, but what the hell. The Leaf Bird flies away from Kotarou's shoulder before landing on his head and glaring up at Himiko's familiar. It was more than ready to use Kotarou's face as a shield if it jumped at him.]

What's with that horror movie familiar?! That definitely doesn't suit a cute girl like you!

[bleedformeplz]

Right?

[She agrees with the 'cute' part, pouting. Her familiar, the mini-chupacabra looks up at her with a lazy eye like 'really?'. Oh, this bat-looking blood sucker really have his eyes on the bird, and at least the bird is smart enough to keep it's distance. Why is it Himiko is always stuck with something ugly? At least it feels that way, and makes a mental note to spoil herself once she reaches her destination.]

I dunno, maybe its a curse or something. [She replies calmly, rocking the heel of her feet back and forth.] At least your bird looks cute, I'm jealous.

[Meanwhile babycabra quietly pinches Himiko's lap with its long claws, enough to scratch the surface of her skin. That bird is looking tasty for him.]

[scriptwriter]

[As much as this bird annoyed Kotarou, he would've felt bad to let it fall prey to that creature. Now that he thought about it... Where did he see that monster before? He had to mentally think back to all of the UMA hunting that he did online to remember if he recognized it. Either way, he's going to get up with the bird still resting on his head like a nest.]

Hahaha... I-I'm sure that your familiar has charms that you haven't recognized yet! Just give things a little time and bond with it! [Though he looking a bit concerned about how it's sitting in her lap.] Hey, are you gonna be okay there? It's messing with your thighs... It could try flipping your skirt next.

D

[schmisse]

[ Well, it makes sense for a newcomer to approach someone who looks like she's been here a while. Still, venturing elsewhere when there could be danger may not be the best plan. Weiss would... actually prefer to stick to where there are a lot of people to be safe. Her toothpick of a sword and her kinetic magic can likely defend them from danger, but... ]

Should that really be what you should be doing?

[ Count on her to be incredibly judgmental about it. ]

[scriptwriter]

[Let's just say that Kotarou did not think this through. He was trying his best to form bonds with people, but this might've not been the best time. Even though, he's going to try his best here! He feels super awkward with her asking that question...]

W-Well... Think of it as me trying to get a lay of the land and wanting to help others out around here. I know we just went through a little, uh, rock rain... But we should look on the bright side here!

[schmisse]

[ It's not his fault! He just went up to the wrong Ice Queen. Former Ice Queen. Whatever.

Her brows lift at what he says. Nothing completely wrong with it, but she can't help but wonder what he means by that. ]

The bright side?

[scriptwriter]

Well, we've managed to survive. I think that's just as good as winning. And people were injured, but it could've been much worst than that.

[Kotarou smiles proudly. They didn't defeat the minotaur, but Kotarou felt that there were more important things to be seen here.]

I'd rather survive with all of my limbs in tact than die without any.

A

[dolcedeleche]

Come here. [Dolce doesn't think she'll have much luck with the bird, but she holds up her fingers for it to step onto... if it wants.]

The Marionetta is a ghostly possessed marionette. Would you like to hear the story of how it came to be?

[It's a ghost story... OBVIOUSLY.]

[Dolce's Marionetta familiar doesn't look too much kinder than the bird, and indeed, keeps cackling menacingly. Kekekeke]

[scriptwriter]

[Now this was a cute girl! The Leaf Bird will fly over to Dolce and land on her fingers to inspect her. Kotarou couldn't help and fire his bird a mixed look of confusion, skepticism and betrayal.]

Hey, hey... So your type is cute girls who talk to you nicely, huh? You're just gonna ditch me like that?

[He's acting like he didn't just try to ditch his familiar a few moments ago. Meanwhile, Kotarou takes a moment to check out Dolce's familiar.]

G-Ghost story, huh? As a seeker of the truth... I can't help and be drawn to stuff like that. And we've got quite a ride ahead of us. So go ahead and shoot.

[dolcedeleche]

Ah... I'm not cute. [BLUUUUUUSH.]

[But she pets the bird very gently, still blushing.] Emerald would be a good name for such a cute bird.

[She clears her throat and looks away!!!]

Once upon a time there was a woman who lived in an obsidian mansion. They were part of a theater group that had a dinner theater in the town, and the writer, director, and other play participants all practiced in the connecting mansion where she lived. She fell in love with a cruel man who only saw her as a plaything. A toy, nothing more. She tried and tried to get him to see her as something more. She showed up behind him in the mirror, she showered him with flowers, and sought out storylines for the theater group that she hoped would make him see her point.

[Lowkey checks to make sure she's not boring him!]

[scriptwriter]

Emerald, huh? I was actually wondering what to name it...

[The bird looks back at Kotarou a little offended. As if it was saying "How dumb can be get, idiot master?! You should be thankful that I'm around to set you straight." But Kotarou is far more invested in Dolce's story... His bright and goofy demeanor shifts to something much more serious. He was someone who wore his heart on his sleeve, so his emotions bled through rather easily.]

So this is gonna be a tragic love story? What happens next between the man and the woman?