[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

[counterclocked]

...Thanks.

[Given how well she knows him, the light surprise at her telling him she trusts her judgment probably isn't surprising. Still, his expression is sincere.]

I hope you find someone else.

[disreguarded]

I hope so too. [ she says, with her usual touch to the beanie on her head. ] I made a lot of promises to a lot of people.

[counterclocked]

Maybe you can tell me more about it over that pizza...?

[He's curious!]

[disreguarded]

Sure. [ she glances at him. ] Like I said, I'll tell you whatever you want. It's all a hell of a fucking story.

[counterclocked]

Sounds good. Probably easy to start from the beginning, right?

[Off they go to the food court, though!!]

[disreguarded]

[ off they go! it's very difficult for her to not just lean all over him like she used to, but she manages. anyway - any questions he has, she'll answer, though she's very careful about it. there's some stuff hunter doesn't need to know. ]

[counterclocked]

[As they head towards the counter to pick something up—]

First things first, I guess... Did you just show up out of nowhere like all of us did here?

[disreguarded]

You mean in this place? Yeah. Well - I mean, I was on my way back to Exandria after beating the House, but I ended up here instead.

Guess my soul got busted up, according to the pillar, but I wouldn't be surprised if this place was just secretly horny for it like the House was.

[counterclocked]

Oh, no, I meant... Is that how you showed up in that house, or was it different back then?

[Hm. He makes a face, before:]

Sorry, the House was what for your soul?

[disreguarded]

Horny. Or hungry. Both? [ keep up, hunter ]

But yeah, I showed up in the house just out of nowhere. We were invited, but nobody remembered accepting, so.

[counterclocked]

Uh. Either way, can I just say gross? Was it like that for everyone, or just you?

[He tilts his head, frowning.]

Not much of an invitation as much as a kidnapping, huh? So after you got there... What happened next?

[disreguarded]

[ she sort of laughs at the gross. she agrees at least? ]

Everybody. It was super fucking gross about how awesome it was. [ anyway. ] So we get there, and we're there for a whole week. We lost some senses, like - I lost all feeling. Phoenix lost his hearing, I think Akira lost his sense of taste? Some people went blind. It was weird, and we had to deal with it the whole week.

The monster thing didn't start until later that week.

[counterclocked]

Wait, so... Everyone lost one of their senses, and they just got them back at the end of the week?

[Weird.]

Also, how many people were there...?

[disreguarded]

Yeah. We caught the monster that week, so we got all our shit back.

[ a long pause. ] Thirty-ish? I think.

[counterclocked]

[After a few moments, curiously:]

So, the whole turning into the monsters thing and the House wanting your soul thing... Are those connected, or are they two completely unrelated things because the universe was that against you?

[disreguarded]

[ she sort of laughs at that. ]

Well - kinda. Okay, so like a fucking billion years ago, the House found a little dude named Blue. It did the same thing to Blue that it was trying to do to us - it grabbed them and kept them prisoner. And then it kept trying to eat people, so Blue came up with a game to make sure we had time to figure out how to defeat the House.

Basically, we had to catch the monster and kill it every week. They weren't really dead, just ghosts, but - it gave us time to investigate. Blue doing that for us meant we didn't all die at once.

Don't get me wrong, it fucking sucked, but it was better than nothing.

[counterclocked]

[After a second:]

So, when you said you saved me...

[disreguarded]

Yeah. We actually saved you.

[counterclocked]

[It's hard to say whether he looks relieved by that, but he definitely looks confused.]

Wait, so... You could save me, but not the others who got killed? Why?

[disreguarded]

The antidote, dude. We only had one, and we found it that week. We figured out it was you during the trial, and -- [ a pause, and she wrinkles her nose. ] -- then it was execution time, and this one girl had the antidote on her. So she used it on you instead of killing you.

[ a pause. ] Like I said - in the end, it didn't matter because all the people who got killed came back. And they weren't monsters anymore.

[counterclocked]

So you only had one? But then, why wouldn't you...

[He pauses, biting his lip, before:]

No - never mind.

[disreguarded]

No, no, no.

[ she stops in her tracks, because she knows EXACTLY where that's going. it's hard not to be so familiar when it hurts like this. ] Don't you start. Stop that. Saving it wouldn't have done us any good. We couldn't replicate it.

I'd do it again the same exact way, every time, to save you.

[counterclocked]

I...

[Something about that determination, that fierce kind of fondness - it makes his heart ache a little bit for her. He pauses, glancing down at the ground.]

Sorry.

[disreguarded]

[ a pause. she collects herself. ]

-- No, you don't have to apologize. [ she says, reaching up to adjust the beanie on her head. ] I should. It's gotta be weird to have some stranger yell at you for something you didn't even do.

[counterclocked]

No, it's... I would probably be upset if someone I cared about said something like that.

[...]

The girl you said saved me - was it you?