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[mingle] world three: claws & fangs.

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world three:
claws & fangs.

With the Space at your back, your next step lands on the soil of a winding footpath. It seems you just missed a sunshower: light shines through the raindrops clinging to the lush canopy overhead, dappling the ground and your fellow travelers in midday sun. Trees are in full flourish everywhere you look, filling the air with the light fragrance of fruit and flowers. Fresh breezes contrast with the warming spring air, and birdcalls overlap softly with a burbling, full stream. In the distance, the sound of wooden wheels shake down a packed dirt road. If you peek through the vegetation, you may be able to make out ornate carriages drawn by oxen or horse. Smaller wooden rickshaws weave through the traffic, and if you're lucky, you may spot one of the rare cars (not a seatbelt in sight!) puttering its way through.

As Original Individuals take inventory of the world around them, they'll realize that there's a letter in their pocket...?

Or Are You Just Happy to See Me? (˵ ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°˵)

(*´ω｀)o Here we go again! This might be a refresher for some of you buuuuut!

If you want any chance of going home again, to your family, friends, loyal dog or whatever, you're all gonna have to try to put yourselves back together! The easiest way to do that is to regain the pieces of yourself that you've lost - and those pieces are gonna be more likely drawn to your soul the more you feel.

That's right! Feelings! You lone wolf types are probably shaking! (ꐦ ಠ皿ಠ )

The same is true for all your sweet ol' friends who have tapped into the alternate version of themselves here. (」゜ロ゜)」 They have to experience meaningful moments in order to regain pieces of themselves too! So laugh! Cry! Question your meaning for living! Don't lose sight of the goal which is to just like, experience stuff really. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ All you've got is each other!

Don't get too downtrodden if they don't recognize you right away though - your bonds will never be broken, true friends are never that far apart, kyahhh. o(*≧□≦)o .... aka they're more likely to want to talk to you than you think.

And besides, you'll only all be able to make it home if you all collectively regain enough pieces of yourselves. ヾ(o✪‿✪o)ｼ

Yayyyyyyy. (ﾉ´ヮ´)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧ Teamwork. Make use of Home Base to touch base with each other if you can!

(*･▽･*) A. Ny. Who.

Welcome to Kōun, the Blessed Country. Look out overhead. （・□・；）

Original Characters will then find themselves with a semi-brief summary of what their Remixed life would have been - and this time around it includes a helpful sentence blurb for each of their relationships to others, as well as the climate of the town around them, recent politics included. For those of you who haven't crafted possible Remixed lives, you'll only get:

( ⚆ _ ⚆ ) Um… Backstory not found?

Just do yourself a favor and don't wander onto the wrong side of town. Kind of a big deal around here. Whoa! Deja vu!

The tiny country of Kōun, so named for its lucky and prosperous lands, sprawls out before you. A few steps in and the path splits off, leading in two directions. One branch goes toward the oceanside town of Umite, while the other heads up to the mountainous town of Yamate.

Umite offers a vivacious scene. The weather here is warmer with very little cloud coverage most days, but the sun is tempered by a constant, cooling breeze. The ports are noisy and hopping with business. Bars and restaurants are always full, and parties and gatherings often spill out onto the streets. Here, humans and demons thrive together with minimal conflict. You're just as likely to run into demon employees and patrons as you are human ones in any given establishment. Houses and businesses are often only one or two floors tall and closely packed together, made primarily of bamboo and sturdy woods. Many locals take to decorating their places with wind chimes, colorful fortune kites, and banners. Modern amenities like electricity and plumbing are also common.

Head out to the white sand beaches and you'll find a large and popular bonfire area used for picnics, sunset drinks and fireworks after dark. Up the boardwalk is a small aquatic history museum for those who need a break from the liveliness of the town. It offers intriguing displays of fossils and preserved specimen of ancient, long-gone creatures. Clusters of boating merchants gather around docks and ports, waving and giving a jovial holler to people who pass by. They sell everything from deliciously fresh fruits and fish to hand-crafted pots to exquisite jewelry from their floating shops. From sunrise to well after sunset, Umite is alive and bustling. But surely there's more to these towns than meets the eye.

Yamate provides a stark contrast. With the forest's canopy so thick in the mountains, the sun offers less heat the deeper you travel. The light here is thin and the temperature is on the cooler side year-round. There's a tendency for fog and mist to gather around its peaks. Locals to this area have not had as much exposure to cultural blends as Umite, so tension between humans and demons is more palpable here, and people seem a little more likely to keep to themselves in general. The businesses and homes of Yamate are much more spread out and spacious, with the building materials of choice being white marble and stone. Residents seem to favor pristine appearances and clean aesthetics, along with open-air designs and high ceilings. It's quite common to find a shop or home with glass-less windows and patios that open directly into the surrounding forests.

One of the biggest draws of Yamate is an enormous meditation chamber. It offers patrons the chance to calm their minds in times of stress, clean their energy, and center their spirits. Another popular destination is the acoustics hall located between the two oldest trees in the forest. It's a perfect place for any musically-inclined folks to practice their instruments or de-rust their pipes, as it offers perfect resonance. Further up in the mountains, an expansive bonsai garden is open to the public. In addition to rare species of trees and a legendary sakura that blooms off-season, there are many unique sculptures donated by a local famed volcanic glass artist before their passing. You may also hear some stray rumors about cursed castle ruins. Hidden high on a forgotten mountain peak, this castle supposedly devours anyone foolish enough to enter its walls, with a preference for newborns... but it's probably nothing to worry about. Unless you want to take a peek inside?

Connecting both sides of the country from the mountain peaks to the ocean are a network of rivers that vary in size. Some are barely large enough to be considered rivers, while others have fast-moving currents and are tens of feet deep. Buildings along the waterfronts here are often raised on stone walls or stilts in the event that the rivers swell, which they often do during the rainy seasons. Networks of much smaller streams branch off between rivers, cutting paths through the forests and towns. At the halfway point between Yamate and Umite, one river leads to a gorgeous, mid-sized waterfall. Rumor has it that this waterfall has magical properties.

On each side, there is a small post office that you can drop letters and parcels off at for delivery. Strangely, the sole deliveryman and two overseers of the offices seem to bear an uncanny resemblance to each other... You can also find one single ancient computer nestled in each town's respective library. Despite the fact that there are only two in the whole country, they don't seem to be very popular just yet. Maybe that has to do with the fact that you can only use them to play Pong. Every now and then, they may also serenade you with The Dial-up Screech™. Enjoy!

Beyond that, regardless of where you travel and what you get up to, both sides of Kōun seem to be bustling with a little extra energy lately. There's plenty of buzz about the upcoming Demon Market Grand Opening from stall owners and prospective customers alike, and some people may pull you over to poll you on what you want to see out of it. More food stalls? Less unruly foot traffic? The world is your oyster! The Night of Demons Parade that will happen several weeks after it also seems to be generating a lot of excitement.

You might also catch wind of a meteor shower set to light up the sky at night - but you know what they say about curiosity and cats, don't you? Anyone outside when this shower hits may find that it's much larger than anticipated, with several flashes and flares of light rocketing straight toward the ground. Though no one is killed and mass destruction doesn't seem to be the goal, one thing is clear... This tiny country is in for some big changes. The gods presiding over it have decided to test its dedication to peace and coexistence, and with this, they offer the start of their challenge: Humans (OU and AU alike) who are too close to these falling meteorites may find themselves transforming into demons. Some change all at once, while others transform slowly over time. That same night, three demons among you will develop unusual physiological differences and abilities, chosen by the gods to become Maou.

That evening, everyone will share the same dream. A swirling darkness that will begin to encroach on their most beloved places - where they might have grown up or shared in vulnerable moments with friends. A shadow that begins to envelop their loved ones until they're disappeared into dust - or an image of their corpse flashes before their eyes, withered and rotten. When they wake up, even though they might not knowhow to fix their problem, they'll know that they are meant to search for the Maou. Any additional answers might take a bit of investigating.

With the stage set, it's time to see if Kōun can live up to its name.

Welcome to your world hop - World Three: Claws and Fangs! Please utilize this post, as well as the AU Plotting Post for all your reference needs. Questions are also welcomed to be sent to Dana (and Aki and Francy) at any time via the Discord!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ He's apparently fine enough to be sucking away at his persimmon without a care, lifting his head slightly and looking somewhat concerned at Wei Wuxian's concern. It's dried blood, at least, and when he comes closer he can see it not only staining Minato's hands, but soaked into his clothes too, the fabric torn across his arms and over parts of his stomach. The clothing is dry now, but wrinkled in the sort of way that suggests it's been hand washed and wrung out and put on right away without bothering— or being able to spare the time— to hang and dry flat.

He is fine, nodding to indicate so, and points his non-snacking hand to his own chest. ]

[Look this means nothing to Wei Wuxian, who has probably also been complaining about food even when in mortal peril.]

It's yours? Is that what you mean? [He makes a face...] Don't know if I'm meant to be soothed by that or not! Come here, let me see you.

[Let him see Minato's gross torn and probably smelly shirt!! And whether or not there are any gaping wounds under it that need tending to.]

[ It's a fact and not meant to soothe one way or another, but Minato answers requests much more readily than he does figuring out how to explain things, so he complies, trotting up close to Wei Wuxian and— takes one last bite of the persimmon to sustain himself until inspections are over— and then T poses.

His clothes are gross, torn, and smelly. There's the blood that's apparent on the forefront, concentrated around the tears of his clothes- forearms and torso taking the brunt of the damage, although the sleeves are also burnt in some places and his clothing overall seems to be travel clothes meant to be durable enough to hold together despite being slashed in places. Under the blood, he smells like dirt- of fog and grass and faintly of ash. Under that, bare and unbroken skin. No gaping wounds, no cuts or bruises or any sign of injury at all.

Everything except for the neck. Overall, Minato looks perfectly fine aside from the skin around his neck, extending past the clavicle down to the chest, blackened and cracking in places, but dry so that it looks like soot that comes off at the edges of the cracks. He tries not to move too much, but it doesn't look painful either.

His gaze wanders over to the half eaten persimmon slowly dripping in his left hand. ]

[Minato please have a single self-preservation, what if he's one of those man-eating baby-snatching demons of lore??

Fortunately the most interest he shows is just in the fact that his clothing looks ruined but his skin looks fine. Funky! Healing magic isn't exactly out of the ordinary but damn... The area that looks cracked and blackened is definitely concerning, too.]

--Don't let me stop you from finishing that! Go on. [WAVING A HAND he doesn't need Minato to continue T posing, hilarious as it is. Instead, he focuses on the visible area of ruined skin, leaning close but not touching.]

Have you been cursed? Is this new, old? It doesn't hurt, does it? Have you seen a doctor for it yet?

[ Wei Wuxian gave him a persimmon, so he can at least offer an arm to nibble on, it's only fair. Especially when Wei Wuxian is so kind as to let him stop T-posing and continue eating his persimmon, which he does, carefully biting around the seeds and keeping them in his palm while he tries to figure out how to respond to a series of rapid fire questions without losing track of the question-answer pairs.

He shrugs, which is always a good start, meaningless gesture as it is. He points to himself, and then brings his right hand up to his mouth and chomps down hard on his thumb— the effect would have been greater if he were able to draw blood, but his mouth also has persimmon in it so the thumb is just badly bruised and covered in persimmon juice.

As sudden as that was, though, a faint white glow emanates from Minato's hand and the bruise fades away to leave perfectly unblemished skin. He touches that same hand to his neck, and shakes his head. It's still black, still pretty gnarly. ]

[AN ARM NIBBLE IS NOT WORTH A PERSIMMON especially when it exploded on him, wow. He watches with mild fascination (AND CONCERN, STILL) as Minato chomps down on his own finger and then heals it just as quickly. Hm...]

It's been a while since I've run into a human with that kind of ability. So this must be - old, not painful? Not painful, or you've gotten used to the pain. Mind if I touch it? Would that hurt? If it would, I won't. I'm no doctor myself, but I do know my way around curses.

[Says the ominous crow demon standing by his pitch black riverboat. He's come to take Minato home, clearly.]

[ Please take Minato home, actually, although he's already on the right side of the river to go home- as much of a home as he still has, bumming around at Iris' farm when he isn't out there getting lost in the woods.

Minato "no self-preservation" Arisato tilts his head up to present his throat to this ominous crow demon. There are cracks in his skin that break apart slightly when the skin tries to stretch, and what looks and smells like ash falling and sliding down his neck. His skin is dry and cold to the touch, and no pulse can be felt on his neck. It's a ???curse??? ]

[Does Minato have an actual home oh my god. MINATO... Absolutely concerning. Very alarming. But fortunately Wei Wuxian isn't here to make a meal of any humans or cause any problems for this poor wandering soul today. All he does is lean in and take a look, gently running a finger along one of the cracks.]

How strange... [That sure is a funky ???curse??? there, friend. After checking his pulse point and a few more of those fissures, he leans back again, rubbing his fingers together.]

Haven't seen anything like this before - not exactly. Is that why you haven't said anything? Hurts to talk, or you just can't manage it?

[ With everybody opening up their shrines to freeloader, what use is a home? A structure of a house probably exists next to Iris' farm where Minato used to live, but then his parents died and he left home and I hope it got repurposed into a chicken coop or something.

It's a real funky ???curse??? but at least the throat and windpipe still work as intended, seeing as Minato can still eat and breathe, and the neck isn't in danger of collapsing entirely and having his head roll off his shoulders no matter how much of that ash chips away. It's like how people naturally lose millions of skin cells every day, it's not particularly harmful.

Just annoying, because he can't talk, demonstratively trying regardless- it's just air that escapes his throat, nothing in terms of a grunt or a whine either, and if Wei Wuxian can read lips, he can pick out Minato trying to say "Doesn't hurt. Just can't talk." ]

[MINATO'S CHICKEN COOP HOUSE oh my god please why does he suffer so much at your hands card, YOU SPECIFICALLY, THE DEMON IN THIS HOUSE.

That sure is funky, though. His nose wrinkles a little again, and his eyes dart to Minato's mouth just in time to pick up on "--hurt, just can't talk".]

Hoh... How troublesome. Which sea witch did you upset? [It's more a little teasing jab than anything, though. He finally steps back to give Minato his personal bubble back again even though Minato apparently doesn't mind having it invaded, setting his hands on his hips.]

I'd say go to Shinobu, but I don't exactly know how well-versed she is in curse removal. She might be able to try treating the skin itself, though. [Hm, hm. He nods back toward his boat.] Want me to give you a ride? To be honest, we should get you washed up while we're at it. You look like you've been rolling around in the forest all night.

[ Minato suffers so his chickens have somewhere warm and spacious to sleep at night.

As Wei Wuxian's eyes dart to Minato's mouth, his entire head turns towards the river- out towards Umite and the sea beyond- because he has probably pissed off more than his share of sea witches... This is something he'll consider, because even though this happened in the forests of Yamate, he can't discount the idea of involvement spanning more than one being. A mess... It would be nice if he could talk and ask around himself instead of leaning on others for their help, but he won't turn away offers.

He nods and holds up all ten fingers. And then one more. He has been rolling around in the forest for more than one night actually. ]

[Minato, stinky forest man, gently freezing to death: at least my chickens are happy.

He follows Minato's gaze out toward the Vast Distance he's staring into, brows arched, and blinks. Hm. Maybe he really did piss off a sea witch?? He'd be more concerned about stopping and helping this kid who may or may not be a curse target if he wasn't something of an ill omen himself. People - demon and human alike - don't tend to bother cursing him, especially since picking a fight with one Kumou is picking a fight with all three. Terrible.

ELEVEN FINGERS THOUGH.]

What? You've been wandering around out here for eleven nights—? That won't do at all! Come, come - we're going to get you cleaned up and fed! Goodness, why are you humans so bad at taking care of yourselves? You can barely hunt, you won't even get new pairs of shoes until your toes are sticking out...

[He's just trailing off into grumbles now BUT HE IS ALSO JUST reaching for Minato's spare hand to start dragging him off toward his boat. KIDNAPPINGS!!]

[ Wei Wuxian with his Kumou protection squad, while Minato technically has 23409858 demons he's red-stringed to but most of them aren't really on his side and so nobody comes to his protection when things like this happen. He's just one human, making his way into the world, doing his best, allowing himself to be dragged onto the boat with no resistance at all to being suddenly kidnapped.

As he sits down and stretches his legs out in front of him, he wiggles his toes a little in his shoes, feeling the way it cracks a little at the sides, but no toes are showing yet and he should be good with these for another few months yet. Even then, if you wear socks, you can ignore holes in your shoes and extend their life a while longer.

Oh- he's going to forget later, so he'd better dip his hands into the water to wash them off now and hope there are no piranhas in these waters. ]

[can't believe this random kidnapping crow styx ferryman cares more about minato's well being than the million demons minato's life is tied to, incredible.

He'll find the waters to be pleasantly piranha-free in this area! There are some tiny river turtles which appear used to being fed, though. As soon as Minato dangles his hands into the water, a few swarm over, nibbling at his fingers in search for the bread.]

I think I may have an extra shawl around here somewhere, if you want that. I'm guessing you probably don't want to sit around sunning while your clothes dry off, anyway... Ah - that's right! [OVER TO THE COVERED OVERHANG HE GOES, emerging with another sack (containing peaches, if he takes a peek) and a plate stacked with red bean cakes.]

Here, here - help yourself. I ran into a lot of generosity today!

[ A turtle immediately chomps down on Minato's finger, but he can't even make a sound to express pain or surprise. He gives his hand a little shake, but... it's not letting go... Healing doesn't do anything for pain either, so he just sort of twists his torso so that half his body is hanging over the side of the boat and he can flash a little smile Wei Wuxian's way. He gives him a bow of the head in thanks for the food, picks up a peach— that he's a little more confident that turtles would eat, versus red bean cakes— and tries to exchange his finger for the fruit.

This involves both hands in the water and the fingers of his other hand being nibbled on now too. Hnnnngh... He's out of hands to gesture now, too, so he sneaks a foot over and pokes Wei Wuxian's leg with the tip of his shoe. ]

[He glances over and absolutely has to stifle a laugh when he sees Minato's turtle struggles... AT LEAST THEY AREN'T SNAPPERS.]

Aiyo-- What are you, grade A sashimi? They seem to like your taste quite a lot! [Are they demon turtles? Regular turtles with a taste for blood?? Mysteries.

In any case, Wei Wuxian makes his way over to the side of the boat and dunks both arms into the water. The turtles that haven't already bit a hold onto Minato's hands immediately flee... It's fine, probably. Then, he reaches for the more determined-looking one, pressing his fingers into its wee jaw to get it to unhinge.]

Come on, off with you! No eating my customers today. Is a peach not good enough for you? Don't be greedy or I'll make you into soup for my dinner tonight.

[ I can't believe I missed the chance to make them snappers. Minato would have retained his fingers but they'd all be trimmed short at the first knuckle for the rest of the world.

He wants to pardon the turtles, because maybe they were just drawn to his persimmon juice covered fingers, or maybe Minato really was cursed by several sea witches during his short life and this is just karma for past Minato crimes. And no matter how good turtle soup sounds, Wei Wuxian has fruit and cakes and Minato has stale biscuits and they should always finish what food they have before they go bad, so when Minato's fingers are free, he takes his dagger out and cuts the peach up into little bite-sized chunks for the turtles to chomp on instead of either of their fingers. He should have done this from the start, of course the turtles wouldn't be enticed by a whole peach five times the size of their heads.

Wei Wuxian gets a nudge on his side by Minato's knee. It's okay! No turtle soup today. ]

[i can't believe your characters suffer so much at your hands

Minato really is too kind, though. Wei Wuxian watches him feed them cut-up peaches with some mild amusement, crossing his arms over his chest.]

Fresh peaches straight from the tree, cut right up into little bite-size pieces, hm? These turtles really are spoiled! But it's fine - you can fatten them up this way and they'll make for an even better soup later.

[No turtle soup today, but no guarantees about the safety of these turtles later...]

Your fingers are fine? All in one piece?

[ It's tough love. It's the opposite of what's happening to these turtles that Minato is effectively dooming because now they'll associate the boat with food and will swim right up and be too fat and heavy to get away next time Wei Wuxian goes fishing for them.

If Minato is distraught in any way by this development, he doesn't show it, simply holding his hands up and wiggling his fingers. They're all there! No blood, no bruises, none of them pop off. He looks to Wei Wuxian's hands to make sure he hadn't gotten bit— if he did, Minato's hands glow and he heals those bites, but if he didn't, then Minato goes ahead and points to the red bean cakes. Google's giving me two versions, one with red beans made into a cake, and one with red bean paste stuffed in between two layers of cake, which are we looking at here? ]

[No that's tough love too. It's the toughest kind of love! The kind that ends with turtle vore.

He nods once he's sure Minato's fingers are all there and in one piece, though! Good, good - he can let the turtles live to fatten up another day. His own fingers are bruise-free so Minato doesn't have to waste any sparkly healing powers on him; seems those turtles don't have a taste for crow.]

Hm? Ah - here! Take as many as you want. If you've been wandering around out here for that long, you've probably only been eating berries and whatever you managed to hunt, right? Fish or birds, maybe?

[He'll move to grab the tray and hold it out! It's the type with red beans made into little cakes, and they still haven't cooled off completely since he didn't get them too long ago.]

[ Minato takes the tray of cakes, and drops them all into the water. For the turtles.

The tray is safe, though, and he hands it back. ]

[HIS CAKES.]

Wh— Hey!? [NOOO he ignores the tray, tossing it onto one of the seats and leaning out over the side of the boat. The turtles are already swarming around some of the cake pieces, which grow soggy in just seconds since they were so fresh and light in texture. HIS CAKES.]

--What in the world did you do that for?! If you don't want to eat them, then just don't eat them! Look, now - see? I'll have to come back and eat them later since they ate my cakes!

[THAT ISN'T HOW IT WORKS.]

[ That is how it works, and Minato immediately looks apologetic, bowing his head almost past his knees where he sits and holding the pose for a moment. Apparently!!! "take as many as you want" comes with the caveat of actually eating the cakes, not regifting them to turtles. That's his bad.

But he straightens up and holds up one hand behind his head with his fingers splayed out so that they poke up from above his head, puts both hands together in front of him sort of in prayer except he wiggles his hands back and forth a bit, and then opens his hands up to cup in front of him. ]

[IT'S COMMON SENSE MINATO, YOU CAN'T BE A HUNGRY KID WHO FEEDS TURTLES FIRST!! Well, you can, but Minato is probably the only one in the world who falls into that category. He sighs and shakes his head over the loss of his cakes, but moves to plonk himself down in front of Minato when he tries... charades-ing.]

—What's that supposed to be, a crown? Praying to the king for a cup of sake? You don't have to pray to anyone if that's what you want, but I don't trust you not to pitch it overboard to give those turtles a real banquet.

[ Seeing the way the turtles had nipped at his fingers, he could argue that they are hungrier than he is!!

But, ahh... He holds up one finger and nods, holds up a second finger and sort of waves his hand back and forth. Then he goes ahead and sits on his hands as a promise not to pitch anything else overboard.

He will now have to play charades with his legs or something. ]

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