TARDIS

The Doctor tipped his hat, though he wasn't exactly pleased. "Good afternoon. I take it there's a reason for stumbling into the TARDIS like Charlie Chaplin?"

Edited by kkhohoho on Nov 23rd 2020 at 8:08:35 AM

Crash Bandicoot-Helping Hand

Crash gave the Doctor and a salute, and was about to head in the direction of the game room, when Lee came stumbling in through the TARDIS door. Crash stared for a few moments, even giving an stunned, awkward wave in return, before coming to his senses and moving to Lee to help steady him himself.

Meanwhile...

Wherever Setsuna had ended up after her abrupt departure from Quarks, she would soon hear a voice. "Excuse me, miss, but you seem troubled."

If Setsuna were to look around for the source of the voice, she would discover a mask floating before her. It was a simple looking mask, all things considered-made of a small plank of wood, with wooden eyes, eyebrows, a nose and a mouth affixed onto it, a goatee of leaves at it's chin and four feathers attached to the top of the plank. Though obviously carved of wood, the mask seemed to emote as freely as any living being-and the emotion currently displayed on its face was of concern. 

"What is it that has you so upset?"

Edited by Dezmo on Nov 26th 2020 at 7:47:55 AM

Near to the kansen and two humans one man and one woman discussing the history of there worlds in a bar sat a small woman with long white hair, a set of vulpine ears and a fluffy white tail. Her ears panned over to the discussion and listened with intent interest even if she was not sure if she wanted to chime in without being prompted, after all she did not want to seem rude, and she had just kind of wandered in looking for a drink after finding herself in an unfamiliar land.

Still she couldn't help but to glance over to the pair, not only did the talks of warfare remind her of her homeland, and the life she lived there. They them selfs were catching her interest, there lack of the features she was familiar with reminding her a bit of the description of the precursors that once had the power to shape the stars. Though when Tibalt concluded his story she gave her head a little shake and snapped out of it, after all they couldn't be the same thing if they cant even protect nature as well as industry when the stories she heard consisted of the forging of the heavens.

Either way the conversation nearby now had her full interest at this point, and she was really tempted to speak up, opening her mouth and exposing her fangs, before she then closed it.... really, not wanting to be rude, and just.... kind of shuffled around waiting for a drink.

TARDIS

"...Ah! Much obliged." Lee gratefully accepted the assistance to get back on his feet, dusting himself off with that sheepish smile becoming more sincere at Crash.

He'd grab the boxes that looked like neon first aid kits and hand-sized aerosol-like cans in a moment as he shook his head at the Doctor.

"I'm afraid I don't quite know who you're referring to, Doctor. B-But the intrusion's unintentional, so my apologies if I'm getting in the way. Just a slight...mix up with some equipment and a bit...of a teleportation mishap."

Edited by TheRealWren on Nov 24th 2020 at 12:26:09 AM

Hope you weren't expecting anything witty here. Maybe some day.

Roon

"That does sound quite terrible, and I'm guessing from your shudder that the worst ones in those wars were from my country. In my world there are some who don't trust some in our alliance, the Northern Parliament is the ones who most are distrusted mostly due to the fact they withdrew to their own lands and barely communicated with everyone until very recently" Roon said leaning her chin on a hand as she listened to Tibalt tell her about his world.

Out of the corner of her eye Roon noticed the foxgirl near the group, who bore an extremely close resemblance to Kawakaze back home, who looked to have been drawn in by what she and Tibalt had been talking about but was hesitating to approach them. Turning to the girl Roon said with a smile, "Did you want something with us? You keep glancing at us like you do, so I thought I'd come over and see what it was."

Tibalt gave a little shrug at the attempts of condolences and gave a quick scan of the bar as Roon mentioned the new person hanging about. He was... Just slightly intrigued by her presence, even though nothing in this place really surprised him anymore. He gave a friendly wave.

"Hello. Nice bar here, yeah?"

It's clearly a case of backroom political albumizing.

Setsuna

FUCKFUCKFUCKFUCKFUCK—

Setsuna was out of the bar, but she wasn't feeling any less nervous. She knew Wolfgang wasn't a bad guy. Or at least he didn't seem to be. But what if he was? Besides, they'd only known each other for, what, a day? Like, okay, her parents got together after half a week, but still.

Point was, as much as she wanted to be with him, she couldn't trust him. Trust him not to turn his backhand— his back whenever it suited him. To say he loved her, only to spurn her. Or worse. And do it again and again and again and again and again...

SQUEEZESQUEEZESQUEEZESQUEEZESQUEEZE

...and she wasn't gonna let that happen. Not again. She liked Wolfgang. A lot. A lot a lot. But until she was absolutely sure, and until that creepy ass mask stopped floating around and got out of her damn way—

...oh, yeah.

There was a creepy-ass mask floating around that wouldn't get out of her damn way.

That was a new one.

Still, she wasn't gonna start flailing about or anything. Back home, she saw these sorts of things all the time. It was a bit different. Maybe somewhat cartoony? But she knew a kami when she saw one.

"Um, hi! Didn't expect to see one of you around here! You here to check up on me or something?"

Edited by kkhohoho on Nov 26th 2020 at 11:05:17 AM

Crash Bandicoot- Beware Curious Bandicoots

Crash returned Lee's smile, perking up at the mention of the equipment Lee was working on. Rising up on his toes, Crash inquisitively peered into the boxes Lee was holding, ready to poke and prod away.

Meanwhile...

"If you mean was I sent here specifically to find you, no." The Mask replied with a gentle shake of his-well, it was technically his entire body, but the 'shaking of the head no' notion was evident.

"I simply saw that you looked to be in distress, and thought to offer my aid." Here a more thoughtful expression crossed his face. "These are troubling times, child, and we must all do what we can to help those around us."

Edited by Dezmo on Nov 26th 2020 at 10:08:10 AM

Setsuna

"Oh! Um, well, thanks. But it's okay."

Liar.

"Really! It's just, uh, boy troubles, I guess?"

LIAR.

"Like, I guess maybe I'm a bit nervous, but that's it. No big deal!"

LIARLIARLIARLIARLIAR

SQUEEZESQUEEZESQUEEZESQUEEZESQUEEZESQUEEZE

"Honest."

Edited by kkhohoho on Nov 26th 2020 at 3:09:06 AM

Wolfgang

Setsuna suddenly ran off, and in response, Wolfgang froze, his mind racing. His first impulse was to go after her, but he wasn't sure if that would make things worse. It was only half a minute or so he paused there, but it felt like forever.

Then, working up his confidence, he gulped down all of his vodka in one pull, and raced off after her on all fours.

Following her scent was easy, and he quickly caught up to her, spotting her talking to a floating mask.

"Setsuna." He said, softly, as he slowly approached. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you. I don't even know what it was that made you upset, but I promise I won't do or say it again."

What is so amusing about this? Why do you take lives? How can you forget?

Meanwhile...

The Mask quirked an eyebrow at Setsuna's response, but it quickly softened into a look of understanding.

"Ah, I see. Troubles of the Heart are often the most complex problems one can face in life. Perhaps not coincidently, I do believe there is a boy approaching us now."  This last remark was punctuated with a nod towards the approaching Wolfgang, who then spoke up.

Edited by Dezmo on Nov 26th 2020 at 11:07:06 AM

Setsuna

Like that would help. It wasn't anything that Wolfgang did that made her upset. Like, okay, it sorta was? But having someone shower her with love and affection — a man showering her with love and affection — part of her loved it. Loved having someone treat her like a person instead of a punching bag.

But Jo did too. Jo showered her with plenty of love and affection. So why didn't she bail the moment it got too much?

Because she wasn't the opposite sex?

Because she didn't remind her of him?

Or did she even know?

"It's okay, Wolfie. I just..."

Gods, how was she gonna say this?

"...I like you. I really do. But... I can't handle it!'' I just can't! I..."

Can't believe you?

"...I can't. Um, besides, we've only known each other for, like, a day, right? Maybe, uh, we should back up a bit? Take it slow? That makes sense, right? Right??"

Seriously? That was the best she could come up with? Like hell he was gonna buy something like that.

Fucking Hachiman, SOMEONE SAVE HER ASS.

Edited by kkhohoho on Nov 26th 2020 at 4:07:23 AM

"Hmmm? Oh yes, yes it is, sorry" the fox replied to Tibalt as she moved a little bit in her seat, looking over to Roon when she addressed her, "It nothing really, I was mostly just listening to you two talking about your homelands and realizing that it seems wherever you go, some things, like the complex webs of alliances leading to great wars seem to remain a constant... a familiar constant", she answered with her ears folded down. "Not that I would really expect any thing different but..."

Tibalt shrugged and started downing a second glass of cider.

"Tis the nature of war. Some say it never changes and I'm tempted to agree... So, what's your world like and what are you doing around this here dimensional nexus?"

It's clearly a case of backroom political albumizing.

"My world?" The fox perked back up a little bit, interest in hers as well? She would need to figure out the best way to describe it to others though, and this took her a few seconds.

"Where... to begin... Ummm... My world is a giant ring, one that encircles the star, it used to be ruled over by gods capable of reshaping heavens.... they have long since vanished though, and today only Okami remains. Working our way down from the divine, the world itself shows traces of its past... ruins of the gods dot its flooded surface, these yomi haunted by there ghosts... avoided by most due to the danger they present, leaving what little usable land to remain"

She pauses briefly and thinks some more, "I guess this only covers geography though... which isn't the most interesting topic.... so I should probably cover the people as well.. lets see"

"Due tot he scarcity of resources, and usable land... there is constant fighting over the islands, each of which is generally ruled over by either a mage or a samurai as a result. Mages are pretty self explanatory, they use there magical prowess to accumulate great political power... they can make the fields grow, bring the skies down, or part the seas, they are both dangerous opponents and useful allies... this tends to make them the top of the hierarchy... Next comes the samurai, the caste that I belong too. We are warriors trained from childhood in our field. So dedicated are we that our men turn themselfs into living weapons, replacing parts of there bodies piece by piece to grow stronger.. and women, well we dedicate our selfs for caring for those machines, because our husbands lives depend on it. In theory this dedication allows us to keep the mages in check, in reality most clans have allied themselfs with some mage or another due to the benefits it provides... in the end though we do keep those under our protection safe"

The fox pauses briefly to catch her breath.

"Then come the sailors and artisans that keep our society fed and equipped, below them merchants... As for how I ended up here? You know that Yomi I mentioned? My sister Ren and I were exploring one of them, hoping to come across some useful piece of technology, or at least some replacment rails for the Hakuryu's O'Yumi..." pause "Our battleship's big weapons.... And we came across this strange ring thing, we investigated it a bit... Ren poked it with a stick... and ummm, we ended up here."

"Sorry if I ended up rambling or loosing you, I ummm, I spend most of my day working with machines people are..."

Jo

“Ringworld?” Jo interjected after the fox's recounting, glancing between the others in the bar in a slightly awkward manner before coughing into her first. “I-I caught Ringworld. Other stuff went over my head a little... ahem. Sorry, love. Carry on.”

It was perhaps because she was distracted by the vulpine features on this figure, but Jo recognized the weirdness of this and did her best to avert her stare somewhere else instead. There were far stranger creatures and lifeforms around her in that very instant, so why was this one sticking out to her...?

“You want me to fetch you a drink, or are you good?” Jo eventually asked of the fox, doing her best to keep her eyes on her face and not her ears. “I could probably go for another round...”

bork

"If you would be so kind! Let me just...do....this..." He said as he finished scurrying around the annoyed and oddly upset looking stand as he did whatever he could in order to get some kind of reading out of her. "Okay! So, everything's hooked up, made sure that the situation isn't going to blow up (We have 87% chance of that not happening, isn't that great!?) Now we just need to go ahead and-"

And then the door was flung open and a new figure bounded their way in! Mason jumped a little bit, suddenly thankful HE wasn't the one doing the button pressing (timing WAS everything after all), and he turned to look at the newcomer. He pondered for a moment her name it started with a K he knew that-

"Oh! Kanami." He greeted with a grin and a wave. "Come in, come in! You're just in time for SCIENCE!" To which he threw his hand in the air and a theatric bolt of lightning struck across the sky. He grinned a bit. "Worth setting that thing up. But no! I'm about to conduct some experiments on Seamstress here! Having another set of eyes would be wonderful to have around! M Ore witnesses, the better!"

"So!" He clapped his hands as he ushered her in and closed the door. "Let's get started shall we?"

Is it selfish that I'm happy as we pass the setting sun?

Wolfgang

"That's fine." Wolfgang replied. "Though, I just wanted to say..."

He trailed off, biting his lip as he thought of his next words carefully. "I don't know if I brought up a bad memory, or what. But I want you to know I'm not lying to you Setsuna. I really do want to help you, because I... I like you. I want to get to know you. And honestly,"

He smiled brightly, "I just like helping people. I like seeing people smile, and I don't like seeing them sad. And that's why I offered to let you come with me, because I don't want you going back to a place that makes you sad."

Wolfgang looked her in the eye to emphasize his next words. "Everyone deserves love, Setsuna. Even if you don't think so."

What is so amusing about this? Why do you take lives? How can you forget?

Meanwhile...

The Mask watched the exchange between the Oni and the Werewolf with a thoughtful look. At the werewolf's words to Setsuna-for that seemed to be the Oni's name-a warm smile spread across the Mask's face, and he spoke up again. "He's right, you know. A right to be loved, and to love ourselves, is something all are deserving of," he said with a sagely nod. "The path to love might seem a frightening path to walk, but I think its one well worth walking."

Taking further stock of the situation, the Mask added "I apologize for intruding on what seems to be a rather intimate moment. I have a question to ask the both of you, but if you wish for me to 'back off' for a moment, I will."

Setsuna

...he bought it?

Seriously?

And... he really didn't want to hurt her. Or at least said he didn't. But maybe he meant it. Maybe all he wanted was to help her. To make her feel better.

To make her not sad.

But then he had the gall to say...

"Everyone deserves love, Setsuna."

She knew what he meant. She knew what he was trying to do. She knew he only wanted to help.

But if knew anything, it was that not everyone deserved it. Maybe most people did. Maybe her mom did. Maybe even all the kids who bullied her and treated her like crap deserved a smidgen.

But not him.

"But... do they? What if there's someone so bad, so awful, that has done so much awful SHIT—"

SQUEEZESQUEEZESQUEEZESQUEEZE

"and they just keep doing it over and over and OVER—"

SQUEEZESQUUEZESQUEEZESQUUEZE

"AND THEY WON'T FUCKING STOP—"

She kept squeezing her little bunbun again and again and again. She was squeezing it so tight and so hard that some of the stitches were coming apart. But with everything coming back to the surface, everything boiling over like a volcano, it wasn't doing any good.

"AND THEY KEEP SAYING THEY LOVE YOU, ONLY TO PLANT YOUR FACE IN THE DAMN GROUND THE NEXT FUCKING MINUTE—"

No matter how much she squeezed, no matter how she tried to make it stop, her muscles kept swelling and bulging, teeth sharpening, horns growing higher and sharper than they'd ever been—

"AND YOU JUST WANNA RIP THEM TO SHREDS!!!"

If someone didn't do something soon, things were gonna get messy..

Wolfgang

As Setsuna looked about ready to crush her stuffed bunny into fluffy paste, Wolfgang merely strode forward, and hugged her around the waist. If he was afraid of her elongated horns and fangs, he didn't show a single sign of it.

"People aren't born evil, Setsuna." He said softly. "I know you think your dad is a monster. But he wasn't born that way. Monsters aren't born. They're made."

Wolfgang slowly looked up at her. "You don't have to forgive him. Everyone deserves love, but not everyone wants love. And you can't make him want it. That's why I said you don't have to go back to him."

He rubbed her back, gently, hoping it would calm her down. "But just because he abandoned love, doesn't mean you have to. I don't care if you love me, or someone else. But don't give up on love, Setsuna. You're not a monster like he is, and you don't have to be. Okay?"

What is so amusing about this? Why do you take lives? How can you forget?

Setsuna

And then it all faded away. The rage. The anger. All of it.

All because someone showed her love. When she was at her worst. Even with the bunny, even after Jo, even with Wolfie, she still lost it.

But all it took was a big old hug to bring her back.

Hair was still long though. And just a bit whiter. Hell, everything was a little more... pronounced. She hadn't broken the threshold, but she'd come way too close for comfort. If she'd let herself go for even a second longer...

She fell to the ground, landing on her knees and hugging Wolfgang as tears streamed down her ruby red face. But she didn't say a word. What could she say?

All she knew was, she did love him. She couldn't afford not to. She needed someone. Anyone. Someone who could tell her what she needed to hear. And mean it. Because she knew he did. She didn't know how, but she knew. So for now, she'd give him a chance.

Because she didn't know if she could go on any other way.

Edited by kkhohoho on Nov 28th 2020 at 1:07:25 PM

Nancy Weaver, Analyzing Seamstress

Nancy, too, jumped with a sudden start at Kanami's sudden entrance, but soon relaxed as she realized who, exactly, had come into the room completely on a whim—or so it seemed. Seamstress relaxed a balled-up fist after it, too, whirled around to see who the uninvited intruder was. The Stand looked remarkably more tense than the User.

"Oh. Hello, Miss Kaname-san," Nancy said, greeting the cheerful monk politely. "I had some questions about Seamstress that I needed answering, so I asked Mason here to run some experiments on her. We're just about done setting up, actually. All I have to do is push this button right here..."

And with that declaration, Nancy walked over to said big red button and, resisting the urge to slam on it as hard as she could, gently pushed it in.

Edited by JumpingFruit on Dec 12th 2020 at 4:25:42 AM

I wear the skin of the Elder Things, having come unto my own.

Tibalt gives a brief hum at the end of the explanation.

"Huh, never been there. Maybe I will some day... Might need a disguise though, can't go traipsing around a world of foxenfriends without ears and a tail, might cause a scene."

He smiles and finishes off his second glass.

"So, presumably poking the ring did a bad and you got flung here for the same reason we all got flung here."

It's clearly a case of backroom political albumizing.

Yuan

Yuan returned to the bar in time for the topic of their worlds to come up. The new kitsune shared some information, and it sounded kind of like... feudal Japan with advanced technology, actually. Interesting. The 7 foot tall durgon girl makes her way over to the small floof and company.

"Huh..." Yuan pondered as she listened to Suzu. "Even though you've got a really advanced society, your social structure resembles the distant past rather than something more modern. Though honestly, I'm kind of throwing stones from a glass house, considering what modern day life is like where I'm from."

She pauses for a moment.

"If you don't mind, I'd like to share a little bit about my own while we're here. Let's see... first of all, it's violent. There was a point a few hundred years ago where everyone in the world suddenly got magic, and some of us were turned into supernatural creatures like dragons."

"It didn't go well. At all. Honestly, it basically turned into world war where it wasn't really battle between nations so much as it was individuals exacting their personal revenge on whoever had wronged them. Or in a lot of cases, people they just didn't like and now felt empowered to kill them."

"It was a terrible time, but the world began rebuilding itself from the blood-soaked land it had become. We started using magic to improve technological advancement and society at large. It became a tool to build ourselves up, rather than one of pointless destruction. People started to become optimistic that things might be headed in a better direction."

She takes a breath, making her paces around the bar as she continues talking.

"Honestly though, it's hard to say if we're living up to that. Rulers these days are generally bullies who rule by fear and force. But even they are generally just toadies for corporations - or Megacorps, as we've come to call them. Businesses that have accumulated so much magical and technological power that they basically have dominion over the world. They've gotten away with murders, and have written the laws for a lot of countries. They've sometimes employed fascists and outright war criminals in their organizations to protect their profits. Nobody's really been able to organize and take them down. Honestly, I wonder why with each passing day."

She has a deep sigh as she ruminates on that last point.

"I found out a lot of this stuff when I stumbled upon this classified file at my last job. Apparently my parent company had been covering up some really heinous stuff. Even after leaking it, the Chinese government officially denies any wrongdoing. One of my hopes is that eventually they're all torn down by force, or magic just eventually makes them obsolete entirely. Anyways... sorry, that was more than a bit rambly. But I wanted to cover the important bases, at least."