[mingle] the space (april).

[fracturamods]

interim mingle

( WELCOME BACK, TRAVELERS. )

There's nothing but the clatter of train tracks, and the odd feeling of almost floating.

When you wake, it's hard to tell exactly what it is that you're missing - only that you are. There are pieces that aren't quite right, even if you're not sure where those pieces would normally be. Pieces of what, exactly....? Well, if you had to put a word to it, it would be - yourself, probably. Or did you get something back recently? In addition, characters will find that they've been allowed to bring back souvenirs from this most recent trip - trinkets, nothing violent, but items that can fit in your character's pockets, whether that be sentimental or otherwise.

The place you've found yourself in is strange, certainly. It's probably worth exploring a bit. For those who have been here a while, they might notice some expansions. Though it just as easily seems that the only form of welcome or explanation that you have, comes from nothing more than a slab of marble.

It might've changed since the last time you saw it. Today it reads:

(*´ω｀)o That wasn't so bad, was it?
Hey, you know how that old song goes?
Do you believe in magic? (☆▽☆) Do ya?

Hope you found what you were looking for!

You might have changed since the last time you saw yourself too - perhaps with a new emblem on your clothes, or a portrait on your skin. In addition to that, it seems like Home Base is on the fritz again…?

It seems that suddenly and at random, characters will be able to suddenly see visions of memories that aren't their own flash before their eyes. Pieces of your lives or where you were before this will suddenly slam into other's heads, as clearly as if they experienced the event and the feelings themselves. You might have an inkling of where your memory went and what it was - but you'll need to talk it out with that person in order to recollect it in all its strength back to yourself. Don't you want to keep those precious parts of yourself? It's best if you don't fall more to pieces while you're here. (Memories that have been lost in fragments cannot be sent to others - that's more fun for the future!)

There's no need to fret that much though. You've already gone through the ordeal once, and you might be able to see results from it. Or maybe you'll get a glimpse of where you're going next. Even so, it's best that you don't get too comfortable, because there is still the unshakeable feeling:

There's still much more ahead of you.

Comments

[huanhua]

in the notsco food court.

[ there is a Lot of Boy standing in the food court kitchen of the notsco. with miles and miles of curly, dark hair, dressed in the ancient fashion of many of the other members of the space, he looks just as ridiculously out of place as you could imagine. if you're tuned into that sort of thing, he's absolutely leaking demonic energy. big, scary, powerful...

and wearing an apron? who knows where he got it, but either way, he's tied back the sleeves of his robe and is now eyeing the stoves and the everything else technology. this is clearly a kitchen, and if shizun is here, he'll surely be hungry...

there's yet another person cooking in the notsco kitchen, although, when the microwave in the kitchen beeps loudly (or anything, really) binghe whips around and points his kitchen knife at it like it was a sword, spooked like a wild animal. after the beeping stops, he returns to his prepping. this process repeats like twenty times.

he hasn't quite figured out how to use the stove yet either, but you know? look he's old and from the past what do you want. someone come show him. ]

are you my shizun

[ in the lovely hot springs, binghe is what you might call, at best, an interruption. if you're naked in the water, well, that's too bad, because he's going to appear out of nowhere, a little more terse than necessary, though not grossly impolite. ]

I'm looking for Peak Lord Shen Qingqiu. Where is he. [ binghe no one knows who that is here but you. no? ok.

after way too long searching and interrupting, eventually, binghe will join others in taking a bath in the springs himself. you can find him submerged all the way to his nose, looking straight ahead.

he's sulking. he is 100% sulking. ]

memshare

[ you can be treated to one of two memories from luo bingpup himself.

the first is of a young luo binghe, maybe fourteen, looking a little scrappy but nonetheless pleased as he practices training techniques with his shizun. the technique requires him to run and attack shen qingqiu to be repelled, but each time he runs in for the move, binghe trips, and ends up face first against shen qingqiu, his arms thrown around him in a hug. he's then scolded. this pattern repeats over, and over, and over. he thought he was soooo slick, and also it's clear he was dying for the affection. unbelievable. i spent an hour looking for this damn excerpt and didn't find it so you're stuck with me describing it.

the second memory is maybe a bit more salacious? whoops. ]

food court....

[rateup]

[ don't mind itaru too much, he's just here to heat up some more instant food now that he's back in the void with a bunch of baggage he'd acquired from the previous world, fragments or otherwise.

the knife-pointing is a little too much, though. ]

Uh... Can I help you?

[ let him guess - this guy doesn't know what a microwave is either. seriously, what is with this world and taking a bunch of long-haired pretty boys from their ancient-ass worlds? it's practically an entirely new genre of its own at this point. ]

[huanhua]

[ binghe turns to look at this person who's entered, giving him a brief once over. after determining he's clearly not a threat or someone particularly worthy of a lot of attention, he gestures at the microwave again with the knife. ]

What is this?

[ yep its another long haired ancient pretty boy. this one's just scary looking. ]

[rateup]

[ yes, because a sloppy-looking guy in his sweats and his bangs tied back is clearly a threat.

itaru's gaze follows the direction of the knife the guy's pointing at, and he can't help but let out a sigh. seriously, he may as well have walked into the kitchen like "ahh shit, here we go again". ]

It's a microwave. You put food inside, and it'll heat it up for you.

[ to demonstrate, he's going to place some hot pockets inside and set the timer like so. look, it's spinning slowly inside! ]

h...hot springs

[givethemhell]

[two demonic cultivators chillin in a hot tub--

IT'S SOME POINT after he's started sulking that Wei Wuxian eventually wades his way over. He was probably off hanging out in a different spring but, naturally attuned to demonic and resentful energy as he is, had immediately SET OFF A-VENTURIN' to find the source of what he was picking up on here.

...IT'S A SULKY MAN. Fair mood, honestly.]

Now there's a soaking technique I've never seen before! But you know, if you're only submerged to your nose, you'll never get that furrow out of your brow.

[Just dunk ya whole head in the water.]

its time baby

[huanhua]

[ ah. binghe glances up, dark eyes scanning the person before him. he can't sense much... and it's not like he feels remotely threatened by anything or anyone, so. after a moment, his head comes out of the water properly, regarding the new visitor to the springs.

maybe this weird mark on his forehead will disappear if he washes it off with the hot water. there's a beat, before he closes his eyes, and does, in fact, submerge fully into the water. he's down there for a pretty decent amount of time...but eventually emerges like a giant, shaggy dog and shoves the hair out of his face anyway.

the mark remains! so do his grumpy brows. pahhh. ]

GRIPS UR HANDS the fullass stupid chaos, it is here

[givethemhell]

[Wow there are two men who fear no gods in this hot spring, one who is now definitely laughing at the other. HE REALLY TRIED HIS BEST... What wild breath capacity too, dang. Maybe he just has enormous lungs to fit in his enormous chest.

Anyway, he reaches out, giving this poor fool a friendly whap on the shoulder.]

It went the other way somehow! Ah, you look even more sour than before... What is it you're so unhappy about? The usual "new place, new rules, things are missing and I don't like any of this" sort of arrival? Come now, no need for such a frown. Here! Let's go get you something nice to eat after you're done with your soak - maybe that will help cheer you up!

[he has known lulu dingbe for 5 seconds and is already trying to ruin his life with peppers]

HOT SPRINGS

[lqg]

[ he intended to leave, in all honesty - but then he hears it. the voice cuts through the din of rolling water and steam and every single hair on liu qingge's body stands on end.

oh no. it can't be.

he turns on his heel, turns the corner, and oh fuck no. he'd recognize that beast anywhere. ]

You-- [ sword out and pointed toward him, thank god he's fully dressed because it's on SIGHT MOTHERFUCKER!!!! ]

[huanhua]

[ it never fails you get in the bath and then, suddenly, liu qingge is there, trying to attack you, again, ]

[ well! this is almost normal! luo binghe's doing absolutely nothing he's not supposed to be doing, short of trying to take a bath. he's even got a towel around his waist and he's unarmed, but the minute he hears that voice (ugh, WHY), he's already zeroed in on liu qingge's location and summoned up a ball of black qi.

when liu qingge swings at him he dodges out of the way, back into the steam of the bath. he doesn't need a weapon to fight this bai zhan bastard off. ] You!

[ the real mature thing to do would be to not fight him, probably, but luo binghe is in fact the OPPOSITE of a mature person, so he sends that energy blast right at at him, disrupting the nice peaceful atmosphere of the hot spring. ]

[lqg]

[ the black ball unsettles him in a way nothing has yet - it sends a jolt down his spine, his brain trying to remember when binghe used a technique like that and it feels like his head turns to static as he tries to pull on the memory. like it's anchored down behind locked doors, and he can't pull it free.

it makes him stall just a second too long, so when the blast of qi comes hurling at him he only barely dodges out of the way - and ends up slamming against a nearby wall without realizing it was there. ]

You beast! [ he manages to at least hide the shake in his voice, but he finally notices that binghe isn't armed and he does aim to be fair. putting his sword away he shouts, pushing up from the wall back to his fighting stance. ] Why the hell are you here?!

food court

[carrotkeeper]

[It's only been like five minutes since she put her food in the microwave and wandered off to check out other areas. It doesn't necessarily shock her there's another person in the room when she returns.

The big surprise is how he whips around to point blank threaten the pizza she's trying to heat up. Like he's never heard the noise before and it's scaring him. The second time it happens, she finally moves over to the device, pushes a button and boom-door's open. No more beeping. ]

It's okay. It's just a timer for the food inside. It's loud, but harmless.

[huanhua]

[ ah... someone else. a girl of some kind, a young one.

slowly, binghe lowers the knife. hm. iris' assessment is exactly correct, he has never heard that noise in his LIFE. what was he supposed to expect!!!!! he's not a stupid man, though, and peering in, he studies the strange food. ]

Did it cook? [ without a fire?? tf ]

[carrotkeeper]

Yep, totally did. I mean, it was already cooked. This was just to make it warm again.

[To prove it's fireless and safe, she starts to slowly tug the pizza out, sliding it into her palm. It's pretty dang warm and she has to slowly move it between to her two hands to cool it down.]

Think I left it for too long though.

food court

[peakfan]

[ he’s dreaming. he’s absolutely got to be dreaming. there’s absolutely no way Binghe is standing here in some food court he hasn’t seen in legit decades startling angrily over a microwave! (he, on the other hand, might be crying internally at the sight of one. IT'S BEEN SO LONG........). no amount of pinching seems to be dispelling it and it doesn’t feel like the dream realm which means….

HE TRANSMIGRATED AGAIN?!

HE’S GONNA SPEW BLOOD FOR REAL. SYSTEM, WHAT THE FUCK! …HEY SYSTEM? SYSTEM???

Don’t turn around Binghe, your old master is turning rapid colors and there’s no fan in sight to hide that gauntlet of expressions. ]

sparkle emojis x 100

[huanhua]

[ nope! surprise! here is binghe, staring at the microwave. in all of his giant robed and giant haired glory. here he stands, squinting at this "microwave". when it finally stops beeping, he lowers his knife, turns around --

and lights up like the goddamn sun. rapid colors will go briefly unnoticed because luo binghe has reached his objective: Find Shizun ] Shizun!

[ TAILWAG!!!!!! he puts the knife down immediately and is making a direct beeline for shizun it's time to hold him now yes!!!!!!! ]

shields face from Turnt Up For Sparkles

[peakfan]

[ oof. Binghe, think of his aching back...! it's like being hit by a 200 pound Chow every time and yet he seems to be rather fond over anything when he pats back ]

Binghe. Are you alright?

[ the WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE goes unsaid but it sure is implied. THIS ISN'T A DREAM OF YOUR DOING, IS IT? ]

food court

[voidbreaker]

[ ha ha.

nah.

ash is just gonna watch him, and the whole process of threatening the microwave with cutlery. it's a beautiful thing, and he can't bring himself to stop it. and yes, he's very obviously laughing at him and making exactly no attempts to hide this. ]

[huanhua]

[ boy do you wanna die

taking a brief moment to glower at the microwave longer, binghe turns his head to glance at this newcomer. he's not the type to kill someone if they don't deserve it because it would make shizun upset!!! so he's not going to fling his knife or anything. he will turn to cut into the chunk of meat on the cutting board in front of him with a very harsh strike, though. ]

If you aren't planning on using this area, then you shouldn't take up space. [ HMPH!! ]

[voidbreaker]

I don’t see a sign telling me I can’t sit here.

[ and if there is one it doesn’t apply to him because he can’t read all of a sudden. he’s fine where he is. ]

‘Sides. Lil’ old me doesn’t take up much space anyway. I’m not even using up counter space.

[ smile ]

food court

[counterclocked]

[Cooking is a generous word for what Hunter's here doing; he's just microwaving one of those hot dogs, and not paying much mind to the other man in the room. That is, until the microwave beeps and Hunter turns just in time to see a kitchen knife being pointed in that direction. He visibly hesitates, glancing from the knife up to him, before he holds his hands up in a placating gesture.]

Wow, uh... Maybe you could put the knife down while I try to figure out what made you upset?

[huanhua]

[ hm. he hadn't even sensed another person in the room. binghe looks him over, briefly, then pulls the knife away. calm, so calm. he's very calm and collected. ]

I'm not upset. [ no, he's fine! he's just cranky that he hasn't seen shizun and that thing is making WEIRD NOISES.

he turns, again, and thwacks the knife into the meat he's cutting for whatever dish he's making. how ominous. ]

mem...share... closes eyes

[souheki]

[AT LEAST COINFLIP GAVE ME OPTION ONE so there is minimal cursed content happening here. ALSO CAN LAN WANGJI SENSE BINGBING'S... DEMON-NESS?? He can probably sense something, which is why he's coming this way in the first place. And, just like with Shen Qingqiu, the only thing that gives away that he's seeing anything is the way he stops abruptly, staring at nothing at the scene unfolding before him.

HUG THE DEMON CHILD, SHEN QINGQIU.]

im so sorry in advance

[huanhua]

[ the demon child keeps ramming stupidly into his shizun. after a couple of tries, he's instructed to run ten laps. it ends with another attempt at the technique, and this time, even more shamelessly, luo binghe just flings his arms directly around shen qingqiu's waist. what a shameless disciple.

this guy's actually bleeding demonic energy, unbeknownst to him, so yeah! very concerning. perhaps even more concerning, is that binghe's shifted his attention away from whatever he was doing before to this. the shared memory is easy to reach from his dreamscapes, and he's standing right next to lan wangji in the memory itself in a matter of seconds.

can he HELP YOU ] Who are you? [ what are u doing looking at his precious shizun memories ]

hot springs.....

[osuni]

[IT'S FINE THOUGH BECAUSE OKUNI IS FULLY CLOTHED.... She's actually sitting right on the edge of the pool and dunking a great big ole raccoon/tanuki in the water, which is unfortunately staining the water a suspicious shade of blue. (it's just paint...... it's fine.....)]

See, this is what happens when you make a mess! [GEEZ how is tanuki such a slob... where did he inherit such qualities? not from baren!!!] Don't wriggle around -- I'll add something nice for you.

[anyway here's a whole costco bag of bath bombs! IN THEY GO!!!]

[huanhua]

[ a young lady with a ridiculous amount of hair is now sitting in the pool. binghe lifts his head, regarding the woman for a moment with disinterest. another day, another lady...

he'd continue to ignore it if it wasn't for the odd fizzing noise. binghe sits up from where he's settled, looking down at the water of the spring, which is now starting to turn like fifteen colors at once. there's even a beautiful stream of glitter that is starting to look like jewels in the water because there's so much??

what the hell. he's never seen anything like that. don't mind him as he sniffs the air like a dog, then covers his mouth and nose, inevitably alerting the lady to his presence. you have company! ]