☆ Event: Mirror Mix-Up

[moustre]

Event Log: November, Mirror Mix-Up

The 20th of Noveuer starts out innocuous. The Looking Glass House is quiet and still at this late hour, largely empty but for the apprentice Witch dusting the many mirrors on the walls in the middle of the night. When the bells chime for 3 am, though, a night of tidying turns into something... a little more hectic. He panics, initially, as things push through various mirrors to scatter across the floor, and then animals, scurrying about, unhappy with their current change in locations. He clings to his duster and waits apprehensively for more Mirrorbound to slip through, prepared to run and get Miss Nessie, but the minutes tick by, and none come. Eventually, he can't ignore the mess any longer, and flees to fetch someone higher up to deal with this nonsense.

I. Early Morning Message The initial hours after 3 am are a bit of a nightmare. Miss Nessie is unavailable, stuck in a long Parliament meeting with Mhairi that has continued into the early morning, and her assistant, given new duties lately due to her packed schedule, is sent to speak with her. It's a bit of a cluster, everything - they've never had something like this happen before! Then again, they'd never had people come through either, until the first group of Mirrorbound several months ago. She gets away long enough around 6 am to make a magical announcement to Mirrorbound only, her voice, at a casual speaking tone, carrying across the city enough to be heard anywhere. "Good morning, Mirrorbound! So sorry for disturbing you at this time of morning, dears, I am. It's just that we've had a bit of an incident in the Looking-Glass House last night! How strange, what I'm hearing, how bizarre. If you would all please report to the Looking-Glass House at your earliest convenience, we believe we may have some things of yours, we do. The sooner the better, as- well, some of the things come through the mirrors last night must be pets! They're terrorizing my poor staff. Now, I won't be the one to greet you, I'm afraid, I'm still quite wrapped up with Parliament, but I hope you'll all be kind to my Assistant Theodore and his Bonded, Sowilo. They'll be making sure everyone gets their things back. Theodore might be a bit buttoned-up, but he's a good lad! Bye for now, dears, I must away back to my meeting, but rest assured, we will be looking into today's unexpected surprise!" After it's been heard, the message cuts off - it's impossible to miss unless one is trying very hard to miss it. Miss Nessie's duties will keep her away during this event, but limited NPC interactions, IC or handwaved OOC, are available with her newly-minted assistant Theodore Rosethorne, and his Bonded Fae, Sowilo. In the future, anything requiring Nessie may also be brought to Theodore! The NPC Contact page will be updated in the next few days to reflect this change. There may be a slight delay on Theodore's responses, but all NPC interaction requests will be answered as soon as possible.

II. A Bit of a Mix-Up It's a red-headed Fae in shoe-lifts who arrives first, glamoured to look perfectly put together despite his long hair being up in a haphazard bun, having been dragged out of his bed to deal with a crisis this early in the morning. He immediately starts directing efforts, red dragonfly wings occasionally flicking with irritation as he reads things off a clipboard and directs this to be piled there and that pet to be corralled before it crashes into something or sets something on fire. The other Witches are a little apprehensive about his presence, but when one protests, he just says with a scowl, "Excuse you. I am Bonded to Miss Nessie's right hand man." The efforts to reunite incoming Mirrorbound with their possessions and pets are... well, an effort is made. Sowilo may just shove something into your arms and announce in an authoritative voice, "You look like you could use one of these." He hears no arguments that it doesn't belong to that person, brushing them off with a haughty, "Well, find the owner, then, make yourself useful, hm?" Before he flits on to the next Mirrorbound, the next item or creature, eager to get rid of everything cluttering up the Looking-Glass House. Fae. Sometimes they're just like that. While the Witches are bustling around trying to get everything sorted out (it's impossible to match things to mirrors, but an attempt is made anyway), it's easy enough to breeze past them and survey the goods on your own, but no one will be allowed to leave with more than one item or creature in their hands or pockets; Sowilo has a sharp eye, and attempted theft will result in an illusion being placed on the thief of being trapped in a maze with their worst nightmare. It lasts until the extra item is returned or will otherwise dissipate after three days. Those that can see through illusions naturally or through practice get a stickier punishment - literally, one of the Witches present will, when prompted by Sowilo, charm the thief with a glue-trap spell, which will cause them to stick to everything except what they're trying to steal - again, until the extra item is returned, or until three days have passed. There isn't much warning about the punishment for attempted theft. The rumors have it that Sowilo's family are descended from Unseelie, and he's... a pain in the behind, to put it lightly. As a reminder, all mixed-up items should eventually find their way back to their original owners unless explicitly plotted out otherwise!

III. Late Morning After a couple of hours of Sowilo's "management", Theodore Rosethorne finally arrives. One quick glance and the poor Witch already looks like he's going to faint. Miss Nessie's assistant is a young Witch who seems to hold himself as prim and proper as possible. Clothes neat and straight. The only thing that seems to be impossible to tame is the mess of curls on his head. He takes the clipboard from his Bonded, but seems at a bit of a loss. Mirrorbound arriving later in the morning are much more likely to get an item that actually belongs to them, though mix-ups may still happen. He gives the best smile he can offer before adjusting his glasses. Exasperated. "I'm quite sorry. Terribly so. If it isn't too much trouble, it would help us greatly if you could find the original owner. I only just escaped digging up documents from Miss Bell's desk..." Needless to say, the poor guy seems to have been thrown into the thick of it and already overwhelmed. Oh, and about Sowilo? "I apologize. He's...Well, he can be a lot when you first meet him." Or a lot in general. Sowilo is quite the character! For those having trouble finding the original owners of whatever they've been given through more conventional means such as word-of-mouth or the Watches, a quick spell is taught and passed out in slips of paper meant to be stuck to the item in question - it acts as a divining rod, pointing the item toward the owner and pulling the person holding it along for the ride. Careful! The charm has no mind for things like walls and doors and people in the way, and will always try to pull the holder in the shortest possible line to its owner. This isn't much help for pets, though, who have minds of their own, and, in some cases, just don't want to be corralled by strange and somewhat-frantic Witches or Monsters.

Welcome to November's event log! Regains arrive through the mirrors ICly on the morning of the 20th. Questions can be found HERE, and if you wish to interact with Theodore and Sowilo, our newest NPCs, comment HERE. You have the option of handwaving the IC interaction to OOCly ask what questions your character might have for them, for us to summarize an answer for, or you can request an IC thread. Simply specify in your comment's subject and we'll respond accordingly. As always, feel free to use this log or make your own!

Comments

OOC QUESTIONS

[moustre]

GENERAL

[moustre]

EVENT

[moustre]

IC QUESTIONS

[moustre]

If you wish to interact with Theodore or Sowilo, please comment here! You have the option of handwaving the IC interaction to OOCly ask what questions your character might have for them, for us to summarize an answer for, or you can request an IC thread. Simply specify in your comment's subject and we'll respond accordingly. Theodore responses may take a day or two to get to but all will be answered as soon as possible.

IC THREAD FOR SOWILO

[starseedling]

[Sowilo... Steven recognizes that name, and as soon as it clicks with him, he becomes more excited about that than the random items tumbling through. He was already there to check things out, but when he sees the other fae, he knows he has to take the opportunity.

He waves his arms, fluttering his wings.]

Sowilo! Wait! I know you!

[Except that's not quite right.]

I mean... I know of you.

Berserker (Cú Chulainn Alter) | OTA

[curruid_coinchenn]

[ II. Bit of a Mix-Up ]

[ Berserker is none too thrilled when he's just handed a piece of yellowed sheet music. It's not his nor is it even in a language he can understand. He hadn't been expecting anything -- he arrived here with everything save for Curruid Coinchenn and somehow having that returned to him didn't seem likely.

With the sheet music safely tucked inside his vest, he takes a moment inspect what else has been thrown out of the mirrors. Nothing seems familiar...Annoying. He turns his head towards someone else nearby. ]

Have you seen anything that looks similar to my tail? In color and pattern only...A helmet or gauntlets.

[ II-A. Mix-up pt. 2 ]

[ Sometime later, Berserker posts a picture of the sheet music on the network. Of particular note is the title: Per la ricuperata salute di Ofelia. ]

is this yours? come get it, i'm tired of holding onto it. i have no use for it.

[ III. Late Morning ]

[ Sometime after fixing his mix up and regaining what was his, Berserker seems completely unhappy. He holds a plushie that looks suspiciously like him by the tail at arm's length. It appears he wants to keep this thing as far away from him as possible, even if it looks absolutely innocuous.

That's about the time he notices someone looking at him. He gets flustered and growls. ]

What are you looking at? Don't you have your own problems to deal with?

[ IV. Wildcard ]

[ These prompts not doing it for you? Got an idea? Drop me a starter or PM me here or on discord at glitzkrieg#0673 and we can work something out! ]

wildcard driveby

[niespodzianka]

[ Geralt is doing even worse than the last time they saw each other, one hand at the side of his head, visibly in distress. Sort of. If you know him; mostly he just looks pissed off, which is like, only 3% different than his normal resting bitch face. ]

Hey, [ he grates, coming up alongside the dragon. ] I'm not staying long. [ Because otherwise someone from the Coven is going to notice he's about to pop and do something about it, probably. ] Doing okay, or did you get gifted a bomb?

L Lawliet (Linden Tailor) | Death Note | OTA

[hearthebell]

II. A Bit of a Mixup

[When L hears the announcement, he makes his way post-haste to the Looking-Glass house. L guards the information and significant relics and people of cases past jealously, because there's always the possibility that they can cause mayhem and damage even worlds away. An old case file, a long-destroyed birth certificate, or a shred of genetic material falling into the wrong hands could be disastrous...

...and if the murder notebook made it here, that would be a calamity on a different level, entirely. But when L arrives, and is confronted by a Fae who thrusts a leather riding crop into his hands, it's... unexpected, to say the least.]

This isn't my--

[It doesn't seem to matter. L's left holding the thing in his spindly, white-fingered hands with an absurdly delicate and somewhat distasteful grasp, glancing uneasily at the other minglers in the crowded space.]

I don't suppose you have an equestrian penchant, or...

[He's thinking it very, very loudly. You can already probably sense what's coming through his extremely intense, round-eyed stare.]

...maybe a fetish?

III. Late Morning

[L's been holding onto the riding crop for far too long, by this point... but he's a detective, and it feels wrong to just leave it without at least figuring out who it belongs to. He also still hasn't found the object that supposedly came from his world, and that, above all, is extremely necessary.

Fortunately, there's a spell for that. The enchanted riding crop leads his steps, and as he travels with his gaze intently on the leather fetish gear, there's a good chance he pokes it right into someone.

Maybe it's you!]

Wildcard Option

[Riding crops aren't your thing? It's cool! Throw something else at me; feel free to catch L before or after he gets his hands on it (it belongs to Niles, who has L's handcuffs.)]

II - mixup

[spaghettimonster]

That... No.

[Of the questions Papyrus expected from fellow night owl, previous coworker & neighbor... that wasn't one of them.]

That's not mine. I don't own anything like... that.

[The skeleton leans back from it a little, like he's concerned Linden will try to give it to him if he stays too close. And he squints at it, making sure he's seeing it right.]

It didn't come with, uh... a saddle?

Papyrus - turnskin | Undertale | OTA

[spaghettimonster]

I - EARLY MORNING WALK
Papyrus, fortunately for him, is a bit of an early morning bird. Or dog, or skeleton, or skeleton wolfman... Whatever!

The point is, he's awake when Nessie helpfully sends out a magical communication right at the start of day. Not in bed, tired and irritated, trying to cover nonexistent ears to continue sleeping, but awake and curious about it. Every mirror incident so far has been people, so this is an interesting and worrying change. It's also a great reason to get out and going someplace that isn't cleaning up other peoples' garbage. Or... Well, it is. But this isn't street garbage, and this time he hopes to find a little he recognizes as his own.

He takes a somewhat meandering route to the Coven, longer than necessary, to enjoy the early morning streets. There's few scowling humans about, and he wants to enjoy that. If he recognizes any faces headed in roughly the same direction, he'll wave and offer greetings - and even offer to walk there with them. The quiet early morning walk is even better with friendly company.


II - A BIT OF A MIX-UP
Papyrus, unfortunately for him, is an early morning skeledogman of a bird. So he gets to be subject to Sowilo's brusque... helpfulness. A fluffy brown blanket, more furry than he already is, is thrust upon him.

The skeleton stammers a brief protest, but the fae is uninterested in it, and, well. Sowilo seems so confident about giving it to him that Papyrus guesses this is the closest to an item for him that he'll be getting.

After all, he doesn't see anything in his glance around - while Sowilo shoos him out of the way - that he recognizes as his own. The early message was guesswork, and it's not at all clear that the belongings here actually belong to the current Mirrorbound. Maybe they belong to people who disappeared back into them, or people who were never kidnapped in the first place. Or...

"Do you think the mirrors are throwing out their trash, too...?"


III - LATER / WILDCARD
Between the warm welcome, the comfortable pace of things being distributed, and how spacious the Looking Glass Room is... Papyrus doesn't stay for very long. Either the blanket is his, or it's someone else's and they'll... post a Lost Blanket ad on the watch network, or something. Maybe he'll put something up saying what he received, to be sure everyone gets the chance to claim it.

Later. After he relaxes on it, maybe reading a book or curling up for a nap, because it looks indescribably comfortable and he want to try it out.

And later comes, and later passes. Papyrus takes that nap, sleeps longer than intended. Throws a little tantrum about it that the neighbors can overhear, and goes out to work on the remaining trash twice as hard to make up for it.

And, eventually, the truth of what items belong to whom... It begins turning up. One of his beloved action figures - a prop for theoretical battle scenarios - returns to his life, a little piece of home again. He's pretty emotional about that for the rest of the day.

[(Got another prompt in mind? Give it a shot. Prose or action tags are both good! I'll match what you go with.)]

later

[textsfromhotland]

Alphys is on a mission, and that mission seems to involve a tiny bundle wrapped in a sheet in her arms. Oh my god did she regain a baby She runs into Papyrus while out and about, and since he's been here longer he may have the answers she's looking for.

"Oh, hey Papyrus," She says, cradling her bundle. "You wouldn't happen to know where I could find a sewing store or something, would you?"

II

[metalcrusher]

How convenient, that Mettaton would find himself roused from... unfortunate power loss... just in time for this strange phenomenon. The promise of material goods, particularly those pertaining to their homeworld, entices Mettaton to attend. For reasons, both MTT-Brand and not.

Somebody must own a feather boa, because Mettaton has it draped around his angular body and over his arms. Nonetheless, this leads Mettaton to an obvious retort, his screen red.

"THOUGH PLAIN PARASOLS AND DVDS OF CARTOONS MIGHT QUALIFY AS GARBAGE, I CAN HARDLY SAY THIS COUNTS," responds Mettaton, gesturing toward the luxurious boa and modeling it like there are no shoulders more deserving than his. "IF ANYTHING, IT'S A GIFT! BUT... I CAN'T SAY I RECOGNIZE ANY OF THESE SUPPOSED TREASURES INTIMATELY, EITHER."

All he can do is shrug. "NOW. IF WE WERE TO FIND SOMETHING BRANDED BY YOURS TRULY... THAT WOULD BE IRREFUTABLE PROOF THAT IT'S ANYTHING BUT TRASH!"

steak / ota / chimera

[battlebound]

[ They deliver Steak grass, or greens. Vegetation of a kind he's never seen on Tierra (it almost looks like spinach, but not quite), and Steak immediately has a barrage of questions about just why he would be the one to be delivered a bunch of greens. Is it the horns? It's the horns, isn't it.

Unfortunately for Steak, he delivers them too late, after the coven has already moved onto assigning the next item.

So.

He's stuck with a bunch of vegetables and no idea what to do with them. Are they even edible? He could try one and find out, but Steak has better ideas. ... Well. Steak has ideas. Some snobbish, conceited Food Souls who happen to share a home with him may say that Steak's ideas are all equally bad and should be regarded as such, but we digress. He has an idea.

That idea being that he's met a couple of people in this city who know more about plants than he ever will. Perhaps they'll recognise it, or at least want to keep it.

(What's he going to do with them anyway? Skewer them on his horns, which now curve upright, as decoration?)

Which is how we come to Steak, horned and with four tentacles wrapped around his waist like the world's worst flotation device, wandering through the streets with a bushel of greens that may be very familiar to anyone who has encountered a chocobo before. ]

[[ ooc: Steak's item belongs to Prompto, but the prompt is definitely open for people to come tell him just WTF he got. Otherwise, if you want to interact with him somewhere else, I have an open log! ]]

[rollfordiplomacy]

[Everett is busy setting up his shop for it's grand opening in the following month. He went to the mirrorbound house, but found nothing of him own, hearing it was likely misplaced... Not too fussed, he returned to the "opening soon!" store and was setting up the porch with decoration when he was Steak wandering by.

Presumptuously, he thinks the man must be making an unexpected delivery. What odd plants he's carrying, though?]

Dropping something by, lad? I don't recall growing such vegetables in my garden. Where ever did you get them? [little does he know the Chimera was just passing by coincidentally]

[clickclickbang]

[Not only are they familiar to anyone who's seen a chocobo, they smell really fucking good to a chocobo.

That is why Prompto is barely hanging on as Primula races through the streets, heading for Steak.]

Prim, stop, stop you're going to run into that guy--!

myr | ota | faun | warning: bees!

[faithlikeaseed]

i. the girls are pollinatinggggg...

There's an unassuming basket among the confusion of items that tumbled out of the mirrors--or a very assuming bee skep, depending on one's ability to recognize the things at fifty paces. Its occupants, come from somewhere colder and darker than the Looking-Glass House, aren't much minded to fly for the first couple of hours after their jouncing arrival.

But as very early morning gives way to merely early morning, and the lights come on, and the sounds of feet and scent of mammalian breath begin to fill the hall, the bees begin to stir. Curious scouts emerge for the morning's expected foraging, alighting on anything that catches their interest in their search for food and water for the hive.

They're largely quiescent to start, but woe betide anyone who jostles (or trips over) their home. You'll be in for an interesting time with the bees until a harried Witch can get a bubble charm off to contain the poor startled things.

[ooc: this is an establishing prompt for anyone who'd like bees in their lives! feel free to use 'em however in your threads. just...don't kill them all pls!!]

ii. o what a bee-utiful morning

Naturally, Myr had been awake--near the end of his "day"--when the call came, so of course he'd immediately made his way down to the Coven to investigate--

And just as immediately made his way right the hell back home at an overheard comment about bees. Being as it's absolutely the wrong time of year for a wayward swarm to have found its way inside the building, they had to have come through the mirrors--and while there's no saying they're any hive of his, well... Someone would need to get them out of there safely, and he'd means and knowledge to do it. Thank the Maker he'd been acting on his hope for spring and slowly assembling a beekeeper's kit.

When he returns to the Looking-Glass House, he's limping and a little winded and nevertheless smiling like he's had rare occasion to since coming to Aefenglom. Made impetuous by excitement and in too much of a hurry to give an ear to pride, he reaches out to the first person he encounters with a gloved hand (his sleeve tied down around his wrist) and says, "D'you have a moment, serah? We've got to get the bees out of here."

Ready for an adventure??

iii. i see a bee, i keep it

Having found the bee skep (with help), Myr's certain now these are his bees that fell through the mirror. With that certainty comes an odd possessiveness; back home, he wouldn't be overmuch concerned with the fate of a single bee that wasn't a queen, but here... Here they're all little pieces of Thedas, and precious for that reason.

He stays late in the morning chasing the bees, long after Theodore's arrived and the Mirrorbound are beginning to sort themselves out. Any mention of a bee still flying around the hall gets his immediate attention; some kind (if harried) Witch has given him a charm for attracting them at a near distance, though he's beginning to think--maybe--if he's not deluding himself... He's started to hear them, the way Fauns are supposed to.

"There's a bee on you," says an enthusiastic voice at your elbow, from nowhere. "Or might be. Mind if I take her with me?"

later: telling the bees

The Sisters are kind and the weather fair (if cold) in the days following the mirrors' odd eruption, so if anyone should be looking for Myr--or just happen by the cottage he shares with Archer and Caster--he's out in the garden often as he can be with his hive in their brand new box. Whether it's singing to them in his fine tenor voice, or recounting to them all that's happened to him since coming to the city as he putters around the garden, that's where he's spending much of his free time.

It's good to have bees again.

iii

[horkbajir]

A bee lands on the back of Toby's big hand. She observes it without fear or excitement, watching it crawl across a heavy scale with its antennae working. It looks good. The venom in the abdomen and acetone in the head, which make most of a bee so unpleasant tasting to humans, are strong but perfectly good flavors to her. Having eaten stinging insects in the past, she knows they can only hurt her in sensitive spots. The inside of her mouth is definitely one of them, but if she's careful...

She raises it towards her beak. A lot of bees and bee relatives are excited and alarmed by mammal breath, with how readily mammals raid their nests, but Toby is not a mammal and the insect is not alarmed. In fact as she extends her tooth-sided tongue it works its antennae curiously over the tip-

Then the faun appears and, honestly, from nowhere at Toby's elbow is a very risky place to be. Her blades are enchanted to not accidentally cut flesh and she's worked on making no sudden moves without looking, but there's still a good chance of getting a sharp prod or three, and probably higher up than most other peoples' elbows.

"Oh, Myr. Are you all right?"

iii

[anotheroldsoldier]

Bucky is busy messing with an odd technological device that seems like it could slip onto a wrist, frowning down at it, all six eyes narrowed. He barely notices the couple of bees that alight in his hair. There's so much going on around him that his mind just isn't on anything but the device in his hand - until a familiar voice sounds from behind him.

He stills, lifting his head slowly. If there's a bee on him, he'd rather not get stung; but maybe it's a testament to his new arachnid nature that it doesn't really bother him all that much either. "Have at 'em. She's all yours."

A pause. "You're collectin' bees, then?"

Kaede(...?) | OTA | Chimera

[long_live_the_queen]

[There were dreams before the strangeness again. Dreams with no one else in it, for once—dreams of an empty beach, with no crying gulls or even stones to break up the endless, monotonous waves and grey sand. The sky was overcast, neither day nor night—there was almost nothing here. Just a faint, constant sense of dread—something unpleasant was going to happen, something awful had already happened. Waking up from these dreams seemed to take ages, as if days were passing instead of a night's rest.

But, rarely, there was something in the sand by her feet. A little curve of pink shell. Just a glimpse—

And Kaede woke up, and that should have been that.

So imagine her surprise when that shell was what was waiting for her in amongst the pile of objects allegedly belonging to Mirrorbound.

There was no reason for it to be there—unbroken, like she'd never snapped it.

There was no reason for her to take it, beyond sentimental nostalgia.

But Kaede had, forgetting it was in her pocket until she was home. She was coming down with a bit of a fever, and wanted to sleep it off instead of getting Chariot or anyone else ill. The Chimera swaddled herself in blankets, and slept—free of dreams, for once.

But she wasn't the one who woke up, days later.]

I. Maria's Haunted Mansion

[This wasn't where she was supposed to wake up. She wasn't even supposed to wake up. Nyu spent quite a long time staring at the ceiling incredulously, and the relief at having limbs again wore off fast. What were her hands supposed to be, the creature's eyes looking back at her in the mirror, her feet, whatever was—was that a tail? And—the ears, strange beastly things. She could hear every creak in this strange house, every sound magnified to nightmarish proportions that made her freeze. It was dark in this room, though...not quite so dark as Nyu thought. It didn't help much.

And the...whatever they were on her head, or used to be—they were antlers, white as bone. Like a deer's antlers, but they had definitely fallen off her head when she'd shaken it. Maybe—maybe she could use them to ward off whatever was outside. Or give them as leave-me-alone gifts, or—it didn't seem right to just abandon them. But if Nyu stayed penned in this room for any longer it felt like her heart might burst, and that was a definite.

So—out the Chimera crept, hesitantly, slowly, her posture hunched timidly, instead of belligerently. The shed antlers were held in her hands more like shields than brandished like a weapon, and her ears were constantly swiveling after noises whether she wanted them to or not. She wished they wouldn't. Nyu could already hear everything, she didn't need the help. She stopped completely sometimes, eyes wide and her feathers unable to decide if they wanted to be bottlebrushed out like a frightened cat or pinned flat, to make herself seem small.

She was making...some kind of progress. But it was progress.

Until she heard a sound even closer to her than before, and jumped away with a sudden squeak. It almost sounded more like a word, if "nyu" could be considered a word.]

Who's there?!

II. Around the City

[Of course, she was terrible at actually staying put. Though once Nyu was out of the creaky house with the nice garden and screaming turnips on spikes by the gate that almost gave her a heart attack, things were...easier to deal with. Dramatically less scary, though no more familiar than before. Nyu spent a lot of time with her head craned all the way up, looking at the unfamiliar spires, the building, the clocktower in the distance.

There were a few close calls—Nyu had a tendency to keep walking while she was looking up, and needed to squeak and swerve out of the way before she crashed into anyone. The Chimera was mostly successful! But she was quick to apologize if not.]

I'm sorry! I didn't hurt you, did I? I'm kind of...pointy.

[Well, maybe less pointy now that she had no antlers. And this form had a lot of fluffy feathers sticking out in inconvenient places. And she was small.

But most of the time collisions were avoided, though Nyu was still lost. When she spotted someone—anyone, she approached them without fear. The Chimera reached up—hesitating at the sight of her own claws—and tentatively nudged at their elbow with a knuckle, claws curled back so far her hands were almost a half-fist.

And another poke, in case the first one was insufficient.]

Um—excuse me. Can you tell me where I am? I'm a bit lost.

[Wildcard]

[For other prompts! Nyu is astonishingly more friendly and willing to interact with strangers than Kaede, and so will be much easier to get involved in things. Unless they scare her. We can plan something out here, on plurk, or surprise me!]

I

[whomthebelltolls]

[The Haunted Mansion is, in fact, probably not the most nerve-settling place in this entire city, despite the huge, vibrant garden outside offsetting the dreary gray stone and thick growth of ivy up the walls, and around narrow windows.

Maria's sense of hearing isn't nearly so acute (though her sense of smell is better than most others'), but she can still hear what sounds like the rustle of Kaede's feathers hissing against each other down the hall. This is not a strange noise, this is not an unsettling noise. It's very, very normal, it just means they'll run into each other at some point like housemates do, even in a place like this.

What is strange, however, is that long before Maria assumes they'll be anywhere near each other, she hears a squeak, and that soft question, what is normally Kaede's voice pitched upward in what sounds more like panic and fear.

... She's never heard the chimera sound like that before, and that makes her concerned, so she walks faster toward the source of the noise, brow furrowed. She's not in her usual hunter's finery, she's not carrying her swords, but if Kaede is spooked by something in the house, then she's ready to fight it, and between the two of them, they should be able to handily dispatch it.

Except, she realizes, as she approaches, the chimera is holding what appears to be her own antlers... and they're sort of half-brandished at Maria. Brandished, or held up as though to stop her walking forward.] ... Do we have an intruder in the house?

Toby | Open

[horkbajir]

A curious Toby arrived early and was assigned money, apparently. A drawstring pouch, which of course she opens, and four large gold coins. And unfortunately while there are unfamiliar symbols carved into the sides, the faces are smooth and featureless. As little as she wants to depend on currency, the first time she saw human faces they were etched in minute detail on the tiny coins and paper slips valued by Americans. She has a little bit of residual fondness for the absurdity of people on money.

She does not see how she's supposed to find its actual owner. It's the kind of thing anyone might claim, and she doesn't know the finding spell that's apparently going to be used later. Toby also can't think of anything she might consider hers except for some books given to her by Tobias, which don't seem to be here.

Her Bonded is, though, and she's interested in that spell, so she hangs around watching, the drawstring bag affixed besides the pouch strapped to her bicep with a bit of transmutation.

[clickclickbang]

Prompto's not actually at the Coven whenever Toby shows up, having had to run off to deliver some packages shortly after getting the Weird Ass Flashlight Gun Thing.

And then there was the whole Mini Regalia Thing.

And the Gyshal Greens.

And basically it's not until a bit later that Prompto even makes his way back to the Coven, Weird Ass Flashlight Gun Thing in hand because this is not his whatever and he would like to leave it here for the actual owner to find.

Alphys | OTA

[textsfromhotland]

W-wait! I don't think this is... mine...?

[Alphys trails off as the fae hands her a plush toy and wanders away without another word. She examines the doll, and it's kind of endearing in an ugly cute way? And who knows- the mirrors connect to all sorts of different universes, so maybe it actually does belong to her. Just an alternate version of her that got into a fantasy series about magical spirits fighting each other for an ultimate prize instead of Mew Mew Kissy Cutie.

She takes the plushie with her in the end, and sits it on her nightstand in the barracks. It looks a little too... sharp to cuddle with.

The next morning, she wakes to find the plush missing from the nightstand, but a cursory search finds it laying under her bed.]

Wha-! Now how did you get under there?

[Alphys' first thought is that she accidentally knocked it off herself, but when she sees that one of its arms is nearly torn off, with a small trail of stuffing, she comes to a realization.]

Oh. I get it now!

[Later on, Alphys has obtained a small sewing kit, and is sitting in the barracks carefully stitching the doll's arm back on. Finally, all of those attempts at cosplay are paying off!

...And if anyone wanders by, they might hear her talking to the doll.]

You know, if you're going to keep ripping yourself up like this, you should r-really consider getting a more sturdy body. J-just sayin'.

[metalcrusher]

[He only hears her voice at first, but fails to take note of her activity. Naturally, he has to barge into whatever this is about. Wheeling up behind her and posing with his hands caressing his robust metal figure, Mettaton booms,]

DID SOMEBODY SAY SHE'S IN NEED OF A STURDY BODY?? OOOOH YES!!

[...Huh. Now that he has that out of his system, there's something peculiar in front of... Oh god.]

... ...ALPHYS. ARE YOU SPEAKING TO THAT DOLL.

Rich Goranski | Be More Chill | Dragon | OTA!

[firewalled]

[When Rich hears of the announcement, he's instantly excited, rushing to get ready for the day with even more enthusiasm than his usual dull roar of stomping and shouting. He might even wake his roommates... but who cares? They need to find out about this anyways! Items from home could be all sorts of things! He might get a game console, or maybe some weird props from the latest drama performance. Maybe he'll get some other fun memento.

...He's mainly hoping for games, though. God, he's been bored!

When he arrives to the cottage, he's craning his neck, searching for anything that looks mildly electronic... only for the fae in charge to shove a briefcase into his hands. That's already an intimidating sight. It's bulky and heavy and looks like something you'd see in a spy thriller. Plus, needless to say, it's certainly not anything from Rich's world. He turns to whoever is beside him with a shrug. Hopefully someone's got better luck than him.]

What'd you end up getting? Anything fun?

[Later, he's lugging his briefcase around, trying to head for home. It should be a simple task... but there's the issue of the case apparently being filled with bricks or something. Rich has taken twice as long to get about halfway home before he finally gets tired, tossing the thing on the ground with a clatter.]

What the hell is in this stupid thing?

[He flops down on the ground, fumbling with the clasps and grumbling all the while... but he falls silent as he gets the case open, and then he just... stares, wide-eyed, at whoever stumbles down his path.]

Who the fuck gives a kid an assault rifle? I don't have a permit for this!

[Don't mind him... he's just going to sit here swearing and panicking for a moment.

[plasticasshole]

[Connor has been looking for Rich, and brightens when he finds him. In his arms he has a teddy bear and a letter of some kind, which he absolutely read. He hurries up to Rich, but then his eyes fall on the briefcase.

It doesn't look familiar, but when he scans the rifle inside he realises it is, at the very least, from his world. Hank doesn't seem like a sniper rifle kind of guy, so that just leaves... Connor. They've clearly gotten their items from home mixed up. Not that Connor was expecting anything. He owned nothing back home but his pistol, and he already has that with him.]

...I have something of yours.

[He holds out the teddy bear.]

Marianne | OTA

[beautyisthebeast]

Looking Glass House


[After a quick morning mixup Marianne is heading back to the Looking Glass House to see whether they actually have anything of hers. Not that she can imagine what they might have. There's still a fair number of people trying to reclaim their belongings, so she awkwardly hovers around the edge of the crowd, waiting for a chance to approach.

Waiting.

Waiting...]

Maybe... maybe I'll come back later...


Heading Home


[Come back later? She wishes she'd never come back at all. She's running back home as quickly as possible now, carrying a long object wrapped up in her coat. How could this have come to her? What will the people from her world say if they see this? They can't see this. She should probably be paying more attention to where she's going, but she's just a little bit distracted. Which is why she just bumped into you.]

S-sorry! Please excuse me...

[She's barely sparing a glance for whoever she just bumped into though. All of her attention is on the wrapped up bundle in her hands. With only that hurriedly mumbled apology, she's trying to continue on her way.]

heading home!

[poisontippedcure]

[Rose wasn’t paying much attention to the crowd, either, which is why Marianne catches her so off-guard. She doesn’t have any particular reason, she just wasn’t really happy about being around so many people.]

[But being bumped into, doesn’t make her happy, and Rose can’t stop herself from retaliating.]

Hey, watch where you’re—

[At least, until she sees who it is. Although she’d only met the other girl once, she struck her as a good person, even if she was frustratingly lacking in the self-confidence department. This goes beyond that, though.]

Marianne? Are you okay?

[unholey]

i. early morning mixup

[It seemed like a reasonable idea at the time: to go by the Looking-Glass House earlier rather than later, in order to avoid the crowds. And maybe it would have been reasonable, if not for Sowilo who cheerfully pushed someone else's violin in his hands on the flimsy-but-inarguable justification that he had the "hands of a musician" before swanning off to reunite the next person with "their" lost item.]

Are you fucking serious. [He came here.... pre-coffee... for this? To get bossed around by a fae with messy hair and tacky platforms and get stuck with an instrument that most certainly does not belong to him that he only vaguely knows how to play?] What is the point of gathering everyone out here so early if...

[Fugo continues to complain, not-so-quietly under his breath, as he makes his way over to a table piled high with unidentified items. And yet... despite his grumbling... it has barely taken any bullying on Sowilo's part to strong-arm Fugo into doing his job for him. RIP.]

ii. search attempts, 1-3

[Fugo might not be happy about this situation, but at no point does it occur him to just ... ditch the violin that has been handed off to him and come back later when things are more organized. No. This violin has to belong to someone. He doesn't want it, but he's loath to leave such a well-made instrument unattended. As people filter through the Looking Glass House, in addition to being caught up in this mess, Fugo will come to bother them.]

Hey. [He hoists the violin case up.] Do you play the violin? Or do you know any violinists among the Mirrorbound? [He scowls, then jerks his chin towards the still-busy Sowilo.] That dumbass handed this off to the first person he saw with long fingers. [He scoffs:] I don't even have callouses.

[Eventually, as Fugo begins to get a sore throat from Too Much Complaining(tm), one of the other Witches present has pity on him and hands him one of the diving spells. "Careful, don't put too much into it-- it's strong," they warn when handing it off.]

Yeah, yeah, I get it. Precision is everything, less is more, caution in all things. Thanks for the help.

[To his credit, Fugo actually waits until he's outside the building before attempting the spell. And he does try to only put a little bit of his own magic into activating it. It's just...

[A very strong spell.]

[Which is how Fugo ends up in the following predicament: disheveled, somewhat banged up, and holding on for dear life to a lamp post with one arm and a leg-- he's being yanked in the opposite direction by the violin case, which he's straining to keep a hold of.]

Can you-- [He grits his teeth, as the violin case tries again to pull him in the direction of its owner.] Just pull the spell off, before it pulls my arm off!

[In the end, exhausted by his failed detective work... Fugo takes refuge in a tea shop and turns to the network. Which he maybe should have started at to begin with, given how the rest of the day has gone.]

un: hemlock

Sowilo stuck me with a violin. No name on the case, just a maker's mark. Well-made, barely used. Send message if you think it might be yours.

ii.(3) | text

[selfishwish]

[Momiji is still tucked snugly into bed when Nessie's message sounds close to sun-up, and he stirs to hear it--and then promptly turns right back over, tucking his pillow overhead. It's been harder to settle down to sleep lately--he doesn't think puca are nocturnal, but you could've fooled him--and so he's only actually been resting for a few hours at that point. He doesn't want to move, and he can't imagine what things of his might have popped out of a mirror overnight.

All of this is to say that, while Fugo is suffering on his behalf, Momiji is sleeping in. And when it gets later in the day and he's finally ready to set off for his shift at the Finders, it's mostly chance that he decides to skim the network on his walk over.

And mostly curiosity that makes him bother to respond.]

Can you take a picture of it?

It's probably not mine, but I worked at a music shop here for a while! Maybe I'll know whoever's it is! U(´・×・｀)U

Closed to Aziraphale

[newtralize]

[What the red headed fae handed Aziraphale before shooing the man away is an odd thing. It looked to be a cocoon. It was a strange thing, but it wasn't cold. It felt very much alive if anything.

And it was very much alive. The fae may not have realized that the creature is also fairly dangerous in nature. It's name alone might indicate it if anyone else knew the name. The Swooping Evil is what it's called. It's diet? Well, it was an encephalophage. What exactly did that entail? It...well, it ate brains. That's it. That's her diet.

The cocoon was small though. It could fit in someone's sleeve even. Surely, it wasn't that big of a creature, was it?

Oh no. She was quite large when she had fully expanded. So what a fright it must be when the small cocoon in Aziraphale's hands suddenly turned into the large creature suddenly soaring above him and making clicking noises.

Perhaps it would be best to locate her owner quickly.

Said owner is frantically walking through the city. When there was the announcement of items and creatures from home suddenly showing up, he had immediately tried to get there to find what may have appeared. He was sure that whatever was his, if he had gotten anything, arrived...

Well, the only things he was fond of were creatures...]