week 4

[airlockedmods]

[Just like the previous week the status quo is restored with frighteningly quick efficiency. PAL still makes the morning and night time announcements through the PIP on each Champion's arm, and still the Champion unitards are freshly laundered and re-hung each morning in their closets. Even the glass roses Choromatsu and Takumi broke after the trial in their fit of anger have been replaced with fresh ones. All signs that there was anything amiss this weekend are completely gone.

There's a new floor to explore, their "reward" for a job well done.]

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday



[ooc: Don't forget to to turn in your AC for week 3, submit your memory regains and put in your threads for the Benefactors!]

Comments

WEDNESDAY

[airlockedmods]

KARAOKE-OFF

[motherfucking_ghost]

[Sometime early in the evening, Church has somehow managed to leave notes around gathering places in the mansion.

Just because things are looking down doesn't mean we should give up.
We need a fun activity to ignore all the dumb bullshit around us!
Come to the karaoke bar and loosen up those vocal cords!

There isn't even really any set up that needs doing. The booze is already there at the bar, the karaoke machine is already warmed up, and the stripper poles are freshly waxed. Church looks...exhausted, to be honest, but this is him, stepping the fuck up, and he's going to be a grinning fool despite it.

When enough people have gathered/have alcoholic beverages in hand, he picks up one of the mics.]

Hey guys! Glad you could make it. I know we're in the middle of a tough and confusing time here, but we can't let ourselves get worked up this whole time, so, in spite of everything PAL wants to throw at us, we're gonna have a good time or die trying!

...Without the dying part! [good? save?] Everyone's gonna get a turn to come up here and give us a song. And I mean everyone, you hear? Half the fun is everyone singing along or laughing along, no hard feelings involved. Can't sing? Get the fuck up here anyway. I'll start us off with a little ditty I think some of you are going to know very well... Maestro, if you please?

[There is no maestro, there's just him picking the song from the machine. The song is always a welcome sight at karaoke. Please feel free to sing along with him. And try to falsetto That Note. He'll even take a bow when he's done. You're welcome, Fantasy Sweet.]

[scourgingstars]

[Ardyn was in a surprisingly upbeat mood, all things considered. He was certainly less reserved than usual, giving most everyone who approached a genuinely charming and confident smile.]

[The glass in his hand, partially empty nearby bottle marked 'Gralean Firagaball' and suspicious smell of cinnamon may have had a little to do with all of that. Not a lot, but it was very likely a contributing factor.]

[Eventually, he did step up to the microphone himself; inebriated or not, it turned out his voice lent itself startlingly well to singing. yes i know it's a cover but the joke doesn't work otherwise hush]

[misanthropicprinciple]

[Unfortunately for Junpei, he's not having as much fun as he normally would at a shindig like this. Fortunately for everyone else, this means he is stone-cold sober and there will be no panties to hand out at this party. He sings along dutifully with Bohemian Rhapsody, because how can you not, but mostly he's sticking to the fringes of the party, a little more of the closed-off, jaded misanthrope he made himself out to be at first.

When it's his turn to sing, though, he chooses a classic that came out just a week after his fourth birthday. And when he sings--at a pitch actually accessible to human beings, god damn, Miku--it's the closest he comes to real feeling all day; and if that feeling is yearning and bitterness, well, who can really blame him?

He leans into each mou ikkai especially, eyes closed so that, for a moment, Junpei's somewhere other than a locked game in the far reaches of space.]

One more time, one more time.
"I'll roll today too."
The girl says, the girl says
While playing on words with a smile!

[He's actually got a pretty nice voice. Yeah, we're surprised, too.]

[tacomeme]

[Takumi is tired. Very tired. He spent most of the night last night hunting 'demons' with his pool skimmer. It's dead now, but thankfully his bow, in a mocking child-like form, has appeared. And thanks to the powers that have put him in this situation to START with, he's been able to make it close enough to real to function.

So after this get together, he will spend the night doing the same thing.

But for now he is here to be with everyone and try to have some fun. One problem:]

I don't know ANY of these songs...

[goteachother]

[Queenie spends a good long while flipping through the book of songs and lyrics. She doesn't know but a couple and she's eager to see some of the new things that are available. She's got a hurricane glass filled with something that shimmers between pink and orange. Karaoke is a new concept to her but once she sees Church and all of his ridiculousness the purpose is clear enough... and she's not about to turn down an opportunity to sing on a real stage.

So eventually she gets up on the stage, still wearing her ridiculous saloon girl outfit which displays Angel's tattoos vibrantly on her arm. She doesn't have access to her magic but without her real wand she wouldn't be able to do anything fun anyway. What she does have, is Angel's illusions. It's more digital, oddly pixelated, but there's swirls of color and light that accompany the stresses of the song. Gold and glittering freedom.

Magic is not the only thing Queenie believes needs conviction. Clearly she believes the same about music.]

[brokencode]

[Angel had no plans for singing, but she'd spent Monday trying to convince Church to put on another even. Out of place or not, she would be remiss if she didn't at least show up. That said, she kept to the back of the room, hoping no one would attempt to hand her a microphone and coerce her into joining them.]

[desperateprayer]

[ Clarith is going to enjoy the entire show. She'd put her Aceid outfit back on, the one with the vest, so that her clothes aren't terribly boring for all of this, but she seems to be having fun. When it's her turn to sing, she'll even get up on stage, laughing and smiling, and just sing for everyone. ...Except... Something is very weird. As she sings, it's like it's pinging off of something--off of the people with magic, but she'll try not to betray that as she sings. ]

I don't want to die without wounds~ ♪
The solitary snow piles up on the ground~ ♫
Is this fate? Then I'll try~ ♪
To vanish without ever knowing...~ ♫

[serrata]

[ So, karaoke by yourself: easy, no one around to judge. Karaoke up on a stage with pretty much all your friends? Slightly more nervewracking. So you can't really blame Yuuri for sticking with a safe option and going for a song that she's confident she can actually sing. So, Fantasy Sweet, you get regaled with Tsubasa wo Kudasai again -- and while Yuuri's not a bad singer persay there's a catch in her voice that's very clearly self-consciousness tripping her up. She looks more than a little relieved once she's done and she can sit down but she's got a smile on her face too. ]

There... that wasn't too bad, was it?

[theundertaker]

[WHAT'S UP, BITCHES, the Fantasy Sweet's favorite intern arrives on the scene a little late but she's making a beeline straight for the bar. She's so excited to be there, in fact, that she just climbs on a stool and vaults her tiny body over the top of the bar instead of taking the actual side entrance and almost immediately starts mixing drinks. She looks like she knows what she's doing and oh god, that drink sure is on fire.

Once she's had a few shots of said flaming alcohol (among other things), she steps up to the mic.]

I've been standing at the edge of the water
'Long as I can remember, never really knowing why
I wish I could be the perfect daughter
But I come back to the water, no matter how hard I try

[She stumbles over a few words, either due to her tipsiness or just not being familiar with the song, and her voice isn't the best among them but at least she looks like she's having a good time.]

[theoverseen]

[Kip is still wearing the lion costume, but now he's wearing it over a pair of Cece's galaxy tights. He definitely doesn't need alcohol to have less shame but he'll be taking advantage of it anyway.

And, of course, at some point he's going to get up in front of the mic and treat everyone to a taste of that sweet voice of his.]

[tacomeme]

[Takumi isn't seen most of the day. Mostly because he sleeps most of it off. He was up all night patrolling for 'demons' so there wouldn't be a repeat of Mikaela. And by morning he's sore, has an increasing array of 'bruises' and a broken pool skimmer.

But by afternoon he's up, and in the dinning hall with his new dumbwaiter gifts. One which is so big it makes it hard to notice even the dumb tuxedo speedo he is glaring at. Said huge thing is a massive stuffed bird about the size of the Christine Jrs. It looks very very soft and good for laying on.

After the karaoke party though, Takumi is back at it- only now he is rearmed. Anyone out late at night might hear a heavy 'crack-thunk' like a tiny localized thunder clap coming from the second floor hallway, and if they go to investigate they might just see Takumi with a long bronze and white bow drawn, lit by soft green light. He is aiming at... something. Something almost impossible to see until he let's the shot go, and with another crack the 'demon' he had been tracking goes up in sparkles, leaving nothing behind but a...

oversized nerf dart?]

Hallway

[misanthropicprinciple]

...Nice shot.

[Junpei comes around the corner to pick up and inspect the Nerf dart, turning it over in his hands. After a moment, he offers it back to Takumi.]

Kawasumi's powers, huh?

dining hall

[scourgingstars]

Is that-

[oh my gods.]

Is that a stuffed chocobo?

dining hall

[everylittlesecret]

[Nari wound up with something or somethings that... she feels might be good for Takumi to see. It takes her all morning to get mentally prepared to leave her room, and after the shit show that was meeting with Angel... well, it's later than she planned. But still she finds him quickly enough, holding out the two bows.]

Are these yours?

[............. is that a giant stuffed bird....?]

dining hall

[serrata]

Is... is that a bird...?

[ IT SURE DOESN'T LOOK LIKE A BIRD ]

[brokencode]

[Wednesday gave rise to more screaming, though... this time it's a bit different sounding. The little robot piloted its way through the halls near the bedrooms, screaming its little digitized heart out. Angel followed behind, attempting to catch hold of the shrieking creature.

When she finally did manage to get him under control, Angel made her way up to the third floor rest area. With the drone seated next to her, she began fiddling with something new -- a synthetic mask. The way her fingers ghosted over the surface might make someone think that there's a certain fondness for... whatever it is.

Of course, every now and again, Angel lifted the mask to her face, much to the irritation of the robot. The result was another set of screams.

Finally, later in the evening, just before the karaoke-off was set to begin, Angel shuffled into the dining room with a collection of goods received from the benefactors. While they would be left there alone for most of the evening, for the time being, Angel stuck near the display. She sat in a chair nearby, cuddling a stuffed rabbit to her chest, while her new drone hovered around her shoulders.]

dining room

[myocordial]

[So Heart hasn't had a... fun time, adjusting to his new power. It's been very tiring and he's pretty done with everything. So considering that? Walking into the dining room and seeing that very familiar coat... It's a very welcome sight right now.

He moves over to it immediately, before looking up at Angel.]

You just received this today?

Dining room

[everylittlesecret]

[Nari peeked into the dining room before walking in, seeing only Angel in there. It's been a while since she's eaten, and the knife wielding roomba at her side stayed close, ready to stab if his owner needed him him. The items drew Nari's attention, seeing a piece of all too familiar cloth. Is that her underwear? How?????

She's about to ask Angel when she sees what Angel is holding. Her face goes white and a small whimper escapes.]

....... Alice?

[misanthropicprinciple]

[The thing about getting Ardyn's powers, Junpei decides, is that not being able to feel much but anger does incredible things for his focus. That's why, despite the lights in the garden feeling way too strange and bright for comfort, Junpei can be found there most of the day. He's either practicing his warp-strike by throwing a plastic replica of a kitchen knife around and poofing after it, or lying in the shade of the trees when that gets too tiring, right arm stretched out above him so he can look at his hand, thoughtful.

He drifts back inside come late afternoon to hawk his wares in the dining room. Junk and ??? items are generally available for free, underwear will be left in the inflatable pool for people to pick up discreetly, and all consumable goods are haggle-able. As Junpei minds his little store, he might pick up the otamatone to try to figure out how to play simple tunes like "Mary Had a Little Lamb" or start playing with the pack of cards.]

garden

[scourgingstars]

[The lights really had been getting to him, here especially. Ardyn hadn't found them painfully oppressive, but now that they'd seemingly been brought down to a lower level the difference was notable. Strange--and a little concerning--but it was low on the list of problems to confront lately.]

[He watched Junpei warp around leaving gradually dissipating trails of magenta crisscrossing around the garden, an oddly sincere smile on his face. There was something very nostalgic to this--for just a moment Ardyn was back in an Insomnia long past, teaching his little brother to warp from the courtyard to the Citadel's steps.]

[When Junpei ran out of MP finally stopped under a tree, Ardyn walked over and sat down next to him with a pigeon settled on his shoulder.]

You've taken to that quickly. Usually it's far easier to warp after a blade stuck in a wall or the ground, but you seem to be having less and less trouble with the midair variant.

dining room

[motherfucking_ghost]

[So. Church has heard. And while he's gotten used to dealing with Ardyn's Ardyniness, Junpei might not react to it as well. Or...react at all?

He's going to try and act very normal. He's also a shitty liar, so, that doesn't work out for him so well. Still, he's gonna pick through the junk.]

I'm from your relative future, and even I don't understand how those things work. [But otamatones are definitely one of the most annoying things ever invented. He's sure of it.]

garden

[myocordial]

[You know, the garden is normally quiet and peaceful? Generally not too many people hang out there at once. It seemed like a nice place to relax considering how tiring everything has been.

So Heart isn't really expecting to find much here. He certainly isn't expecting the sudden movement of the knife and the sudden warping--

It wouldn't be a big deal, but it catches him off guard. And he jumps. Well. Part of him does, while his body falls to the ground.]

...Oh, not again.

[Heart just sighs as his "ghost" is once again out of his body.]

I have waited for when this would be the most funny and somehow Junpei being deadpan feels right

[desperateprayer]

[ Clarith is going to catch him in the dining room. ]

Good afternoon, Junpei.

[ She looks like a real nun now, Junpei! But she'll look over his wares and... Pause at the underwear. And then go pale. Oh gods, did he seriously...? She'll pick up the very simply, medieval underwear (ONE OF THEM WHY ARE THERE TWO) and stare. ]

...How long have you had this...?

[desperateprayer]

[ This day, Clarith can be found around with a new outfit. She looks like a proper nun now, and in the morning, after her usual memorial trip, she'll head to the dining room were she'll eat breakfast and sit there, turning a golden key over and over in her hands as if curious. Even later, she'll be found in the third floor rest area just reading before going down to make lunch. Otherwise, she'll be back to reading. ]