(no subject)

[royalsubject]

Who: Everyone
When: Right after that labyrinth, which happens to be the bright and early morning of Day 11
Where: Tier 2's expanded forest—the town—wherever you might be, really.
What: today is a lovely day in which everything is divine and wonderful and

[...wait. no, hold on a second.

there was a labyrinth in the middle of the night—one that took place in the forest. what came of that anyway? well, this forest sure seems bigger than before. the trees provide a leafy canopy over everything on Tier 2—in fact, every part of Tier 2 is really dark now. in some places it might still seem like nighttime. huh. it wasn't like that before, but okay.

if you're in town at all over the course of the day, you'll catch wind of an old rumor that might stick out more than anything you've heard recently:

"I remember now—when I was a kid, I heard there was buried treasure in the forest!"

"...where exactly did you hear this? Because I heard the same thing!"

try as you might to find the verbal source of the rumor, but you won't find it. gossip's gossip, after all. or maybe it's not important.


follow this loud "thud" sound further into the forest, and you'll discover a kid mulling about in one of the darker clearings. she has pigtails—two thin, amber pigtails on each side of her head. currently, her small hand is clenched in a fist as she slams it against the tree. it's surprisingly loud.

"I can't believe this. I can't believe this...!"

her voice... does not sound like that of a particular door. instead, it might sound like a distant voice that might have called out to you in a dark, dark forest before... in all honesty, you might not recall hearing it, and that's okay.

anyway. it's dark, so you can't make out the finer details, but you could almost swear that the edges of her seem to blur.

SO! what are you doing today, denizens of Kingdom Daze? going about your own business? dealing with things after the labyrinth? or... are you letting your curiosity get the best of you one way or the other?

((OOC POST-LABYRINTH NOTES))

((I'm just going ahead and posting this for anyone who is ready. Whether you were in the labyrinth or not, feel free to address this NPC—who miiiight be a little Dangerous—and I'll tag you! Likewise with the treasure rumor—if you want to engage with at some point at ALL (even outside this mingle) just say so! You can also go about and do your own thing in this post.

If you didn't play in the labyrinth, but want to SAY that you did, there's a HANDWAVE option here! Just comment to that and you'll be squared away. Otherwise, you can use this mingle as you see fit for day in the life after the labyrinth if you want.))

Comments

OOC POST-LABYRINTH NOTES

[royalsubject]

[...for those who came out of the labyrinth.

injuries/ailments: if your character left with an injury, they still have it and need it taken care of, and nothing at the clinic will instantly "magic" it all better again—care and time is all that works. likewise with the other ailments: if your character is experiencing numbness, or they have a ringing in their ears, this will inevitably last until the end of the day.

bakery punch card: if you visit the bakery, the employer NPC (the handwavy one that doesn't have a face or identity, OOCly speaking here) will recognize this card as being really old—they won't specify how old. however, they (or a characters who works there if you wanted to work that out) can still honor this card and, in return for it, just go ahead and give your character a Jumbo Cupcake™ in either chocolate or vanilla. if your character refuses to hand over the card, they won't get a Jumbo Cupcake™, but they'll still have a card that can give them the occasional burst of an accomplished feeling. if your character works at the bakery, they can cheat and keep both the card AND the Jumbo Cupcake™.

diary: if your character still has the diary, everything will be as it was when they found it (and if you added some pages, the exceptions are listed below.) the happy entries are still there. sometimes, when you look over it, or just touch it, you might feel a bit of... hope.

pages: if your character held onto any of the pages they found in Room 2 or Room 3, they will find that these are now blank.

lantern: though it wouldn't light in the labyrinth, outside of the labyrinth it can stay lit—in fact, the wick never seems to go down, so you won't ever have to replace the candle if your character chose to burn it. your character might get the feeling that it doesn't want to give up anymore.

dragonfly key: you still have this. it radiates a fond, familiar warmth. your character might even get the feeling that this is still useful.

Feel free to toss any questions here about anything I may have forgotten to address! ♥]

[prismbloom]

open

[ Her first labyrinth... could have gone a lot worse. Lightning had been a wonderful partner, though, and she's grateful for her. But she's even happier to get out of that labyrinth, especially after how emotional it had been...

anyway, you can find Aqua milling around, enjoying her freedom. ]

for that npc

[ Well, she can't just ignore a child wandering around in the dark, so Aqua approaches her. ]

Are you alright?

[royalsubject]

[the girl's last punch to the tree rattles the leaves at the top. normally... punches aren't that strong. at least, punches by a little girl to giant trees. she turns to you, bearing into you with empty, amber eyes. she doesn't seem impressed, or content at all for that matter.]

No—no, I am not at all alright.

[prismbloom]

[ oh dear ]

Is there anything I can do to help? Anything at all?

[royalsubject]

[her eyes widen. eureka.]

Yes.

I'd like for you to burn this forest down.

[prismbloom]

[ wha-- ]

Burn it? Why would you want something like that?

[royalsubject]

[her gaze hasn't left you yet.]

Because you ruined it for me.

[fauxfabre]

[Buried treasure, huh. Luke is a bit skeptical of the rumors he keeps overhearing at work, but he decides to poke around in the forest after his shift is up nevertheless. He's barely done any exploring since he arrived, after all.

Things are peaceful and relatively dull until a strange thumping sound -that seems to be getting louder- turns out to be... a little kid just ahead... punching a tree?]

[to himself but probably loud enough to be heard]

What the hell...

[royalsubject]

[the kid continues punching the tree, rattling the leaves above. definitely not something a normal kid like this should be capable of, but... look at that, she is.]

For this, of all things ever, to happen!

[annnd another punch. doesn't seem like she's noticed you just yet.]

[fauxfabre]

[Luke winces at the sounds of impact. yeaah this is definitely not normal, but he isn't about to turn around and leave with more questions than answers...]

Hey, what are you talking about? What happened?

[royalsubject]

[the girl drops her fist, and turns to look at you with empty, amber eyes.]

Oh... This forest is causing problems. But, sir, maybe you can help me.

[fauxfabre]

[looks up briefly at the very nonthreatening looking tree she was just laying into]

It's... I mean, sure, I'll try. How would I help?

[glorious]

[spotting the girl and giving her a thoughtful look before approaching]

Hello, miss...?

[royalsubject]

[she punches the tree one last time, lowering her fist as some of the leaves fall around her. really, no child should be this strong. she then turns her head to look at him, her amber eyes reflecting nothing]

Yes, sir? I'm very upset right now.

[glorious]

I had assumed as such...Do you need anything?

[royalsubject]

I do have a favor I'd like to ask of you. It shouldn't be too much.

[glorious]

Very well. What is it?

[steelmyself]

[ he can be found in town conducting his duties for the weapon shop with a slightly sullen demeanor, looking even more annoyed with the world than usual as he carries scrap metal to the nearest junkyard. ]

It doesn't mean anything, in any case.

[ --he'll occasionally mutter, or something like it.

He does, however, take the time out to investigate the noise from the forest, warily approaching the girl... ]

[royalsubject]

[she continues pounding the tree with a tiny fist. and yet, this tiny fist seems strong enough to rattle the branches and trees above.]

Is this even happening?!

[another punch to the poor tree—doesn't seem like she's noticed you yet.]

[steelmyself]

[ he's...wary of that strength. But he can't walk away now; that would be sensible! ]

I assure you you're not dreaming, young lady.

[royalsubject]

[pausing to look him over. she drops her fist, now making her tone of voice even.]

Oh... But I do wish I were. [a brief pause] You seem like you could help me out with something.

[steelmyself]

[ totally unimpressed ]

And what is that?

[savioring]

[Lightning is very happy to be out of that Labyrinth. Aqua had been a better partner than she could have asked for... and she now see's why she needed a partner.

She's going to be out and about town with Odin at her side, trying to make sense of what the hell she has just been through.]

to the npc;

[........]

Why are you punching a tree?

[royalsubject]

[she lands one last punch before turning to you with empty eyes; her expression isn't readable, either]

It's the source of many bad memories... would you do me a favor?

[savioring]

[Kids these days...]

Depends on what it is.