Intro Log

[neverbreaks]

WHO: Luisa and you
WHERE: The Labyrinth, then the city
WHEN: Feb. 12
WHAT: A new arrival, and she happens to be a Madrigal!
WARNINGS: Possibly some anxiety

Labyrinth

[ Luisa had no idea what was going on.

She didn't remember ever falling asleep, but when she woke she suddenly found herself in this strange place. It kind of reminded her of a Roman coliseum, like the ones she'd read about in a few books she'd picked up before. There didn't seem to be any obvious way out, though, and after wandering around while trying to find an exit, she'd come across some kind of strange creature that tried to attack her.

It wasn't like she'd never had this dream before, of encountering some monster that she needed to fight, so she wasn't entirely surprised to find a sword and shield nearby as well. But she knew something was wrong as soon as she picked them up - while they weren't necessarily heavy, she could definitely feel the weight of them. And as she blocked a blow from the monster with the shield, she felt the strain in her muscles, just trying to keep from being crushed under it.

And yeah, she's had this dream before too - even before all the trouble with the magic, she'd have nightmares of losing her strength, of not being able to do what she needed to. But while dodging another of the monster's attacks, she felt the sharp sting of its claws as it grazed her arm, leaving dark red lines on her skin.

This wasn't a dream. It was all real, and she was actually fighting a monster without her usual strength. But if all this was real, then did that mean her family could also be here somewhere?

She wasn't entirely sure how she managed to beat the monster, but it probably had something to do with the sudden rush of adrenaline with the need to find her family. She called out for each of them, searching through the twists and turns of the maze while encountering more beasts. Some where animals that she'd heard about, some were creatures of myth she'd read about, but all were tough and difficult to beat.

She somehow manages to push on, even though the fights wear down on her. She isn't sure how long she can keep this up, but she has to keep trying. If her family was here, she needed to find them. ]

The City

[ After eventually getting out of the labyrinth, and with some explanation later, Luisa takes a little time to explore this strange new city. It's a weird feeling; she'd never even left the Encanto before, and suddenly in some huge city in who-knows-where. Even with the mountains surrounding their home, she had never felt quite as...small as she does now.

She tries not to dwell on that too much, though, as she takes in all the stores and shops along the street. And she can't help a puzzled frown. ]

Why is everything so...red?

Comments

Labyrinth

[nonmagical]

[Mirabel has gotta stop venturing into labyrinths when they open up, but today is not that day.

The coliseum maze does remind her of Luisa, but she doesn’t know that’s who that’s here yet. She rounds a corner, and immediately bumps into a doglike monster who turns around with a snarl.

Uh oh.]

Ah ha, good boy. Let’s not - whoa! Hold on-!

[Luisa can probably hear a scream somewhere nearby.]

[neverbreaks]

[ Luisa definitely does, and it's with a chill down her spine when she recognizes the voice. ]

Mirabel...?

[ And she takes off running, sword and shield still in hand as she tries to follow the sound of it as it echoes off the coliseum walls. ]

Mirabel!

[nonmagical]

[She thinks she hears Luisa’s voice - but it can’t be… could it?]

Luisa! Luisa, are you there- oof!

[The dog takes one giant paw and just. Knocks her into the wall.]

[neverbreaks]

Mirabel!

[ She arrives just as the dog beast knocks her sister away, and jumps in between them right as the dog leaps forward. The beast crashes into her shield but immediately recovers, and Luisa can feel her feet dragging as it pushes her back a little as the beast tries to overpower her. ]

Mira!

City

[whiteshroud]

[Jun pauses at the very buff woman. He's never seen her come into the coffee shop before, he knows that much, and yet there's something familiar about her between her looks, her out-of-place clothes, her confusion about her surroundings...

...

This is another Madrigal isn't it. Isn't it?? How many are there.]

It's because it's almost Valentine's day! Red, pink and white are the popular colors for the holiday.

[neverbreaks]

[ So many you don't even know.

She hadn't actually expected an answer, but she can't help a puzzled look as she turns to him. ] Valentine's day? What's that?

[whiteshroud]

It's a holiday about romance and love. If you have a special someone in your life, you're supposed to do something special with them.

If you're single, well you eat chocolate and try to cope with this holiday being everywhere the best you can.

[neverbreaks]

[ She thinks for a moment before it clicks in her head. ] Oh! We do actually have something similar to that back home, El Dia de Amor y Amistad. It's not just for lovers, though, people give gifts to their friends too.

City

[matizrojo]

[Isabela certainly would have had a thing or two to say about the color scheme taking over the city... if it weren't for the fact that she knows that voice.]

--Luisa?

[Okay no she can't be stopped. Not entirely.]

Don't even get me started on the decorations.

[--alright, back to the important things. She can't imagine Luisa went through the same place she did. That place felt too personal. But then... what did she go through to get here. Thinking about it, her eyes widen slightly.]

...are you alright? What-- what did you see before you got here?

[neverbreaks]

[ She turns, the familiar voice startling her. ]

Isa!

[ She's so glad to see her older sister, but the question has her hesitate a moment. She hadn't seen Isabela in the labyrinth. Had she ended up somewhere different? ]

Yeah, I'm...okay. [ Relatively. ] I was in some sort of coliseum...like the ancient Roman kind? I ended up fighting a lot of animals and beasts.

[ It had taken her a long time to realize that she actually didn't need to fight them. ]

[matizrojo]

["Okay" in Luisa terms always has some unspoken hidden meanings. But Isabela didn't have much room to talk there. So she won't. But she can put together a real strong guess, based on the description of the labyrinth they put her through.]

...I was afraid of that. Looks like we all got targeted pretty personally.

[neverbreaks]

[ Luisa frowns. ] Really? So yours was different?

[ While she's relieved to know that Isabela hadn't gone through anything like she had, she could hear enough in her sister's tone to figure out that she hadn't had an easy time of it either. ]

Are you okay?

Labyrinth

[crushtheskulls]

[If Luisa is struggling with the onslaught of beasts, she might find some help - in the form of a gray horse, who's found herself in this labyrinth too. As she's fighting one, said horse comes thundering out, swinging around and kicking one of the beasts with her back hooves.]

Eat some of THIS!

[There's some delight in her voice as she delivers a kick. And yeah, she can talk.]

[neverbreaks]

[ The sound of hooves has Luisa tensing a moment, because she's barely handling one monster, she doesn't know if she could take another. But then suddenly the beast over her is staggering back, and she sees the horse that has come to apparently help. ]

Whoa...

[ Whether she's surprised by the horse's help, or the fact that it could talk, is hard to say. ]

[crushtheskulls]

[Horse backs up a little with a satisfied neighing sound. She takes a glance at Luisa, nodding to her - she's not at all like the scrawnier humans she's seen around here.]

I think we can take it out in one hit if we attack together!

[neverbreaks]

[ She's starting to wonder if maybe this is a dream, after all. But she'll think about that later, as she readies her sword with a nod. ]

Okay! Let's go!

city

[escuchando]

Luisa!

[Speaking of red, there's an exciteable young woman hurrying down the street towards where Luisa is standing, dressed in her signature yellow and red though somewhat more weather-appropriate than she had been when she'd first got here.

There's no mistaking her cousin's tall frame as she stands peering into a window. Dolores pops up by her elbow with a muted squeak.]

Fancy finding you here.

[With how many of her family she's now stumbled across in Kaisou, her greetings are getting rather less surprised.]

[neverbreaks]

[ Her cousin's voice - and squeak - is also pretty distinct, and she turns to the older girl with a surprised smile. ]

Dolores! I didn't know you were here too.

[ By now she had already run into some of the others, but just how many family members ended up in this weird place? ]

[escuchando]

Mm, here I am!

[More and more of them by the day, it seems. Luisa does not seem to be as... outwardly overwhelmed as most of her family has appeared on entry to Kaisou so far, so she peers at her cousin with a curious expression.]

How long have you been walking around out here?

The City

[cardinalrule]

[Hunter is stopped in front of a bookstore. A bookstore with an incredibly Valentine's display in the front window, all pinks and reds, and it's giving him pause. He wanted to go in and maybe get some books on humans, but if it's all love holiday stuff he isn't sure it's worth his time.

At the question he speaks up, tone displeased.]

It's because of some human holiday.

[He finally glances over and, upon noticing her normal human ears, raises an eyebrow.]

Which... you should probably know about? [Maybe? He isn't sure.]

[neverbreaks]

[ Luisa had been contemplating maybe getting a book herself. But now probably wasn't the best time. She glanced over at him, a little uncertain. ]

Maybe? The town I grew up in was pretty small, especially compared to a place like this. There could be some things that are different.

[cardinalrule]

[Hunter has to raise an eyebrow at that.]

Even if you're from a small town you're still human, right? You don't know your own holidays? Or is Valentine's day exclusive to this region?

City

[wedonttalkabout]

[Whatever is controlling the Portal Hole (TM- Bruno Madrigal) has a clear preference for Madrigals. Maybe he should go into the Zodiac offices and just straight-up ask what they think is going on.

...Except he won't do that because Bruno is conflict-avoidant enough to never step foot in there unless something serious goes on.

But hey, he's wandering the city, keeping out of sight as much as possible when he catches sight of Luisa- it's hard to miss her after all. He wanders over- he doesn't even know why he's surprised his family are showing up anymore. ]

Luisa- you-you made it, too. [He waves at the...pink, grimacing.] Apparently it's some sort of holiday.

[neverbreaks]

[ She spins around at the voice. ]

Tío Bruno! [ Her expression is a mix of relief and confusion. She's happy to see a familiar face, but she's beginning to wonder how much of their family was here.

She doesn't get a chance to ask, though, when he explains the colorful decorations for the store they stood in front of. ] Holiday? What kind of holiday?

[wedonttalkabout]

[The answer is so many of them. So very many. ]

A romantic one. [His tone really does suggest how deeply uninterested in it he is.] Apparently couples buy each other things? To show how much they love each other. [Another pause, then lighter:] Your Papá would have loved this.

[Agustín is such a big dork with a lot of love for his wife. He turns to look her over, worried.]

Are you okay? Did you get here safe? That uh...maze is pretty bad, right?