kaisou | 001 ❄️ i'll write the future with this lament

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mafuyu asahina

001 ❄️ i'll write the future with this lament

WHO: Mafuyu Asahina and You!
WHERE: The Labyrinth, around the city
WHEN: September 24th, late night
WHAT: A brand new arrival!
WARNINGS: Marionettes as horror, physical descriptions of panic attacks. More will be added as required.

a. and there it's remained, unable to be burned, not turning to ash
cw: marionettes as horror, panic attacks

( at a glance, it's a normal museum. or rather, it's familiar- it's the doll exhibit she'd gone to with the others, months ago. but... it's fuller. longer. the halls twist and turn into each other, display rooms seem to go on forever and as she wanders... her stomach and chest hurt. they feel tight. marionettes hang from the ceiling, in alcoves and sitting on the benches she'd otherwise find some respite on- and she swears the one she just passed looked like ena, strangled on her own strings-- no. no... the doll just hangs there like normal. but that sidebraid and bob is the same.

she's never seen ena look peaceful before. it's unsettling.

but that's not the only familiar face she sees- mizuki playfully posed at a water fountain, mouth open like she's about to crack a joke-

kanade, hanging in the centerpiece of a display caught in too many strings.

there's even girls from her club and homeroom, but kanade is the worst of it. her head feels like static and her breathing is rapid and light even before she breaks into a run, trying to find a way out. but every turn just feels more and more hopeless. eventually, she can't even see where she's going- it's no surprise if she just crashes into someone, or at least runs into something nearby. )

b. by facing it head-on, fair and square

( kaisou... a city she's never heard of before. and a second cellphone... unnecessary. but she keeps it anyways. mostly she just. doesn't understand why she's here. it's not like the sekai- even if the how was strange, she understood it's purpose and it was welcomed. the labyrinth was one of the worst things she's experienced in a long time, and now she's stuck in some strange american city.

observant people may spot her wandering aimlessly in her school uniform, school bag in hands and a laptop carefully tucked against her chest with absolutely no light in her eyes- but the moment she's approached, she seems to light up again with a polite smile as she ducks out of the way of the sidewalk- that's why they approached, right? never mind the fact that unless she takes up libra on their offer she's a homeless foreign teenage girl or anything like that. psh. ridiculous. )

c. wildcard

(i had a network option but then i realized anyone in the previous two prompts would render it redundant by virtue of just being a decent person? next time. but if neither of these work for you, by all means shoot your own shot! feel free to hit me up at amity_rose on plurk or in a pm if you have an idea, but i'm open to many things. please feel free to look at mafuyu's permissions and opt out, just in case. )

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[Meanwhile, Ken happened to be wandering around the city as all he wanted to do was to find a quiet place to do his homework. While he could have gone to the library, he would much rather not face the wrath of the librarian who would shush him over every minor sound he might make. Home wasn't an option either as he rather not face his overbearing "mother".

That said, when he spotted someone who he has yet to see before, he had to raise an eyebrow or two. As much as he wanted to say something, he kept to himself. The last thing he wanted was to bother someone.

And yet, that didn't stop him from staring and wondering if he should help her out.]

( on the bright side, her plan to be unobtrusive and therefore not a problem is working! on the very bad side, her plan to be unobtrusive and therefore not a problem is working. how do you ask for help when you're not even sure where to go or how to do so- when you've been the reliable one who people turn to for help all your life?

this is going great. it is also going horribly.

the moment she stops watching the current passer-by, her shoulders fall and she sighs, muttering quietly: )

What am I supposed to do...?

[If anything, that was the cue for the poor boy to go and help the girl out. It seemed that his intuition was correct, she was definitely just like him. A person who has no idea what was going on and wanted some answers.

That said, when he went over to her, he raised an eyebrow.]

Um...what do you mean by that? What do you need help with?

( oh no he was still there--

it... probably says something about her current mental state that she straight up stopped acknowledging people entirely the moment they left her sight. normally she waits until they're in another room, in most cases. how embarrassing.

with a shaky smile, mafuyu seems to recoil a little, one hand raised in front of her like she's trying to rebuff his concern. )

Oh- no, I was just talking to myself. It's alright.

( GIRL )

[Again, Ken didn't say anything at first. Judging from her stance and her reaction, it seemed that she really didn't want people to bother her. And yet, he wondered how he should proceed with this.

This was most definitely going to be awkward.]

Are you sure? There is nothing wrong with asking for help.

[Did he do the right thing by continuing this conversation?]

( yes there is, if you're mafuyu. people ask her for help, not the other way around. she's not... used to being helpless like this. it's not very pleasant, honestly.

which is to say, as ken presses, mafuyu's already weak resolve to handle this on her own falters visibly as she glances away for a moment, holding her school bag close to her chest. )

I... um. I don't... I just got here...

Oh.

[Was all he could say as he glanced awkwardly at the ground and then back at her. It was clear she was uncomfortable but at the same time, he wondered how much she truly know about this place if she just got here.]

Then how much do you know?

[Even with the mess that was the attempt at creating an artificial portal and Hunter's subsequent punishment of community service, Hunter isn't dissuaded. He's still doing whatever he can through Zodiac to investigate the naturally occurring portals, which for him means suiting up in his full Golden Guard uniform and heading through the first one he finds, one adorable little cardinal in tow.

Honestly, heading into a museum isn't too bad. He's been to worse places, and it reminds him of the library and a little of the Emperor's Castle back home.

At least, it starts out that way. The winding, twisting halls full of dead-eyed marionettes start reminding him of his own labyrinth after a time. It's enough to start unsettling him, enough that as he turns a corner he doesn't notice someone barreling in his direction until they're running right into each other. Flapjack takes off, cheeping above them, and Hunter stumbles back, nearly crashing to the ground.]

Hey!

( she thinks she sees herself, dolled up and strung up out of the corner of her eyes at some point in her desperate running. even the normal dolls are starting to make her stomach twist and churn too- and then suddenly (not suddenly? everything is blurring together-) there's someone else.

skidding to a stop, chest heaving and lungs burning, mafuyu stares at the only one she's seen who isn't a doll or a puppet- except...

she doesn't like that mask. she doesn't know why, but. even as he speaks, she can feel herself backing away already. )

... Who are you? What is this place?

[Once he's regained his balance he gives whoever he ran into a longer look. It's just a girl, a perfectly normal-looking girl.

He doesn't quite relax, because he's used to benign things being deadly (thanks, Boiling Isles), but he refrains from having Flapjack turn into his staff form. Instead, the bird settles back down on his shoulder, cheeping softly.

Hey, at least he can answer those questions!]

Another labyrinth. Your labyrinth, I'm guessing, unless it was created for someone else and you happened to stumble into it.

[He assumes that isn't the case.]

I'm - [Aaand he pauses, trying to figure out if he should give his title or his name. People in Kaisou generally haven't responded favourably to his title....

So clearly, he needs to go with both.] - Hunter, the head of the Emperor's Coven in the Boiling Isles and the Golden Guard of Emperor Belos.

( a- a labyrinth? like the legend? but this is... it's like her own personal hell on some level. is that what it's supposed to be? that didn't come up in anything she'd ever read for school.

the boy keeps going as if that isn't already overwhelming information and- the boiling isles? emperor who-- did she miss something in the news? is this just a bad dream? all of it... all of it is too much. )

I- I don't recognize either of those concepts. Is this even real?

[He really shouldn't be surprised that she doesn't recognize any of what he's saying, it's clear from her ears that she's human. Still, he makes a light noise, sort of like a scoff.]

Of course this is real. It may seem like a dream, but it isn't, and the sooner you can accept that the sooner we can get out of here.

--Is that part of why I can't find an exit?

( because she's used to weird dimensional things, actually- it's just that this is a waking nightmare and she hates it. but if accepting that fact is part of finding the door than please manifest, door-san. )

[Hunter grumbles under his breath a bit. Explaining the labyrinths is never fun given how they're pretty much made to torture the person they were created for. He gestures with a hand at their surroundings.]

This labyrinth was made for you in mind. It's been specially created according to you as an individual, so you're the only one who can find the way out of it.

... Why. What's the point of this.

( she's sure hunter can see the cause of her irritation, given that one of the dolls nearby seems to resemble her. it's...

the absolute worst. mafuyu scowls a little before glancing away. )

I've been trying...

I don't know. [Maybe to torture them, because he remembers how awful his labyrinth was, but he isn't going to throw a baseless, biased theory out like that.]

But you need to try harder. There is a way out, I've never heard of anyone getting stuck in one of these before.

[Bootstraps, clearly that's the answer.]

( of course she's not doing good enough. she never is.

but hearing it from a complete stranger is just as bad as hearing it from her mother. it's not fair. she does so much, always, and it's never enough...

there's a flash of something (pain? irritation? frustration?) across her face before it's gone again, and something else comes to mind. )

Are you going to be trapped here too until I can?

[Good question! Hunter doesn't hesitate to answer it.]

According to my past experience, yes. I don't have a way out until the owner of the labyrinth finds one.

[Which is irritating (he sounds a bit irritated by this), but it isn't enough to stop him from entering these portals to investigate them.]

Luckily, everyone have always found a way out.

[Varian's been heading back towards his apartment from doing his community service when he stumbles on a girl looking...well. Not great. He diverts his course, a little worried about her- and as she ducks out of the way, he raises his hands in faux-surrender. ]

Uh, hey, you don't have to move. Are- are you okay? You're looking kinda... lost.

Edited 2022-09-25 20:14 (UTC)

Oh- um-

( this isn't normal for her. mafuyu is the one who helps, not the one who needs help. what does she even do? what does she say? sure, she knows on some level that she's not the only unfortunate soul plucked from home to... whatever this place is, but that doesn't mean she knows how to acknowledge it.

her mouth feels dry when she manages a forced, uneasy smile finally. )

You could... say I'm a new arrival.

[Varian quickly catches that the girl's looking pretty awkward and offers her what he hopes is an encouraging smile.]

Yeah, that happens a lot here. People kinda just...turn up. Do you need help with anything? I've been here a couple months.

( varian you have no idea, none of her prepared scripts include isekai shenanigans! what if someone asks her about something she likes?! )

I, ah... I suppose I'm just not quite sure where to go from here. I came out of the labyrinth a bit ago? It's all just... a lot.

( she is so overwhelmed please help )

[Whatever will she do then?! The scandal!]

Oh, wow, okay. Well, we should probably get you somewhere to live first, huh? There's the apartments. Zodiac put us other worlders up for free. Well... "free". [those sure are some finger quotes there] They expect us to do missions for them sometimes, but hey, better than living on the streets, right? You want me to take you there? Then at least you've got a base to uh...start off from.

( flounder because she has no opinions of her own, to be honest. it'll be so upsetting.

mafuyu frowns in thought but... it does make sense. if free accommodations are provided, something must be done in return. but the boy before her doesn't seem to be too keen on it, even with the reassurances. or perhaps because of it? )

I... yes. Yes, that would be for the best, I think.

Okay, cool!

[He gestures for her to follow him as he heads off in the direction of the apartment buildings.]

They're just this way. You can just pick whichever empty one you like, that's what I did. Uh- I'm Varian, by the way. Hi.

That... I don't think that's how it normally works. But okay.

( management leaves something to be desired, clearly. but sure.

...

maybe she'll be able to see the water from one. that'd be nice. )

Mafuyu Asahina. I... um. Hi.

( to her, of course, she says it properly- asahina mafuyu. but, well, translations. )

I guess not? Honestly, I'm not from this country or...this time, actually, so I was never completely sure if it was just a thing that happened normally or not.

[He grew up on a farm and then moved into the castle - he hasn't had to pay a day's rent in his life. He smiles, amused- but friendly.]

Nice to meetcha. So um- is anything in this world familiar to you? I mean uh- the whole... modern-day city thing?

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001 ❄️ i'll write the future with this lament

b

its been one tag and i'm going to scrangle them both

It's gonna be awkward

me looking at mafuyus social script like Yeah

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